The Winchester Three Part Four: Family Matters
by insearchofcheez
Summary: This is Part Four of my Winchester Three verse. SISFIC! Laney and Sam try to find a way to save Dean from his demon deal. Follows Season 3 canon-ish.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Sorry that it took so long for me to get this part up. I've been very busy and my muse fled the building for awhile. My goal is to post weekly! Please read and review. Thanks.**

Chapter 1

Sam flipped the pages of one of the many books he'd pulled from Bobby's library just a week earlier. They'd stopped on their way down from Dr. Mason's clinic to grab as much stuff as they could and head back out on the road. Bobby had been tolerant and allowed Sam and Laney to take whatever they wanted in their search to save Dean from his deal, for all the good he thought it would do.

"I'm not finding anything helpful here," said Sam in frustration. "You?" he asked, turning to look over the backseat of the Impala at his little sister. She'd been studying an ancient Latin text on crossroads demons for the past couple of days.

"Not so far," she muttered, without looking up.

Sam sighed heavily. She'd been light on words, withdrawn, not doing much but reading and making phone calls and scouring every resource she could. Not much different from himself actually, except for the nightly crying herself to sleep. Sometimes she outwardly cried when it was just the two of them and she couldn't be bothered to hide how she was feeling from him. Sam felt helpless most times. He couldn't guarantee her they'd save Dean, even if they planned on moving Heaven and Hell to do it. Dean on the other hand was oblivious; or at least pretending to be. And if he was pretending, he was doing a pretty damn good job of it. He was on a mission to do anything and everything he could during his last year on Earth, including getting it on with the some hot twins he'd picked up at a local bar earlier in the day. Sam had been very indulgent when it came to his brother's desires. The man had given up his life for him after all, he kind of owed him.

Laney did not share her brother's tolerance for Dean's shenanigans. It felt like a punch in the face, every time he felt the need to remind them of his deal.

Sam's phone broke the silence. Laney looked up from her book, always hoping every call might be the breakthrough they were looking for.

"Hello."

 _"_ _Hey Sam."_

"Oh, hey Bobby."

 _"_ _What are you up to?"_

"Nothing."

There was a long sigh before Bobby spoke again _. "You and your sister still have your nose buried in those books. You know they're not going to help right? You want to break Dean out of that deal, you ain't going to find the answer in no book."_

"Then where Bobby?"

 _"_ _Kid, I wish I knew."_

Sam sighed and shared a look with Laney in the rearview mirror.

 _"_ _Where's your brother?"_

"Busy," said Sam, looking up at the motel window and seeing his brother's silhouette.

 _"_ _Well get him unbusy 'cause I found something."_

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"Seriously, give me your knife 'cause I need to gouge my eyes out!"

"It was a beautiful natural act Sammy," said Dean, slapping his brother's knee.

"It was a part of you I never wanted to see Dean. I mean what if Laney had gone to get you. She would have been traumatized for life."

"Funny," said Dean. Although Sam did have a point. "Anyway, I really do appreciate you letting me have a little quality time with those fine young ladies."

"Sure, no problem," said Sam.

"Really, no problem?"

"Sure, you deserve to have a little fun."

"Well, I'm in violent agreement with you there."

Laney cleared her throat from the backseat. "Can we talk about business now?"

Dean raised a weary brow and sighed. Laney was all business lately.

"Yeah sure," said Dean. "So what's Bobby got?"

"Demonic omens outside Lincoln, Nebraska," said Sam.

"That's all?"

"Yeah."

"Doesn't make sense, crazy storms show up outside how many cities?" asked Dean.

"Seventeen," said Laney, leaning over the front seat, head poking between her brothers.

"Seventeen and it's been two weeks and we've got nothing. If there's going to be a war, I wish it would just start already."

"I'll second that," said Laney. She was more than a little eager to meet some demons.

Sam frowned. He worried about this new bloodlust his sister seemed to have developed. While she was busy working on saving Dean she also insisted on getting revenge on anything in the way.

"How far to Lincoln?" asked Sam.

"I'd say about five or six hours. We'll be driving all night," said Dean.

Laney scooted back in her seat and broke open a book, using a penlight to read in the dark.

Dean frowned. Like Sam, she was hardly sleeping. The marks around her wrist were still not all the way healed. He didn't really know how to interact with her anymore. Yeah, he'd dropped a bomb on her and there was going to be fallout, but...

"Hey Laney," he said, softly.

Laney didn't look up from her book. "Hmm?"

"You wanna' drive for awhile?"

Sam's head snapped over to Dean in surprise. Not only did Dean rarely let Sam drive, he _never_ ever let Laney drive. Not even when she'd begged him.

If Laney was shocked by the proposal she didn't show it. She simply shrugged. "That's okay, I've got some reading to do."

"Suit yourself," Dean said with a heavy sigh. Whenever he pulled himself away from his quest to live it up, he managed to remember his sister was suffering and hurting. Not that he had any idea how to help her.

They drove on in silence for the rest of the night.

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It was a couple hours after dawn when they arrived at their meeting place with Bobby, a small farm just outside Lincoln that Bobby had pinpointed as ground zero for the demonic activity he'd been tracking.

Laney climbed out of the Impala and stretched her stiff muscles. She'd managed only an hour or two of disjointed sleep, pretty much par for the course since her time at Cold Oak. She hadn't shared with either brother, but she'd been having nightmares of the yellow-eyed demon. Even though he was dead now, he still haunted her sleep. The strength of her powers had scared her. There were other lingering after effects too. Headaches that were low-intensity but unrelenting and what could only be described as aching in her bones. But all of that was _still_ at the bottom of the list of things she was worried about. She wasn't about to share any of it. Dean was the priority now.

"Hey Bobby," she said, walking over to him and giving him a quick hug and peck on the check.

"Hi sweetheart," he said, studying her momentarily. Poor kid had the eyes of a much older soul; seen too much, had too much happen. Once upon a time those eyes had been innocent, joyful, inquisitive. She was everything sweet. Now they were just flat and pained. It made his heart break.

"Hey Bobby," greeted Sam and Dean.

"Bacon cheeseburger for breakfast there Dean?"

"Well, I sold my soul, I've only got a year to live, not sweatin' the cholesterol."

If Laney had any tears left, she might have managed one. But Dean had her all cried out. She quickly got herself under control, softly sighed and headed for the porch. "Let's just check this out. If it's a bust I want to get moving on to the next lead."

Dean shook his head and tossed his cheeseburger into the bushes. _Killjoy._

Sam walked ahead of his sister and pulled her behind him, Dean then pushed her behind him, then Bobby pushed her behind him. Laney shook her head in frustration. Why did they bother? In a year, Dean would be gone. She was going to have to learn to do it all on her own anyway.

They walked into the house after not getting any answer at the door and were immediately assaulted with an ungodly smell. Laney coughed and gagged for a moment. It was the stench of death.

They did a methodical sweep of the first floor.

"Hey, you hear that?" asked Sam.

"What?" asked Laney.

"Sounds like screaming?"

Laney listened close. She didn't sense anyone in the house. But she'd been wrong before.

They approached the sound. Dean slid the door open. The stench they'd smelled before ratcheted up by about a million. Laney had to swallow convulsively to keep from puking. She walked around the couch to see three people – _corpses_ – that were shriveled up and dead, just sitting on the couch like they'd been watching television. Swarms of flies hovered around them.

Bobby came into the room suddenly and took a step back. "Good lord."

"Bobby, what happened here?" asked Dean.

"I don't know. Your guess is as good as mine."

"Let's check for sulfur," said Dean.

Bobby went to the window sills while Sam took a closer look at the corpses on the couch. Laney just stood in the middle of the room, looking bewildered and wondering what the hell was going on. She went through her mind trying to think of anything similar she'd ever heard about or read about, but came up empty.

Dean whistled a low warning. Everyone immediately went on guard.

Dean pointed towards the outside. Someone was coming. Sam headed for the back door of the house, Dean for the front towards the porch and Laney took up position near him.

Dean stepped out on the porch looking around. Laney hung back just inside the door waiting for the signal to come out. She watched as Dean walked to the stairs, looked around, and then turned back. Then out of the corner of her eye a black man with a shotgun took a swing at Dean sending him to the ground. A woman followed closely behind him.

Laney came out of her cover, cocked her gun and shoved it against the head of the man that had taken Dean down.

"Drop it," said Laney, "Or I will drop you."

"Hey, hey," he said, slowly raising one of his hands up.

Laney looked to the woman. "I'll shoot him. I'll do it, if you even take one step."

Dean was regaining his bearings when he looked up and saw the ferocious sight of his sister. She was all business and she met every word she said. He carefully got to his knees and was rising to his feet when heard Bobby.

"Isaac? Tamara?"

"Bobby? Please tell me you know these guys well enough to convince her not to shoot me."

"Laney, stand down," said Bobby.

Laney didn't move. Dean got to his feet up and brushed himself off. He stepped next to his sister.

"Laney, it's good."

Laney hesitated a moment before she seemed to hear him. She lowered her weapon.

Dean was grateful, but more than that, he was worried. He saw the serious glint in her eyes, hard set of her jaw. It was cold.

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After the situation had cooled down and Bobby's acquaintance with Tamara and Isaac had been explained, the couple invited them back to their current headquarters closer to the city, an old abandoned home they were squatting in.

Laney studied their maps and texts that they had in the main room, looking for anything useful that she didn't already know. She didn't have her photographic memory anymore, but she had discovered that her memorization skills had been continuously improving. She was still technically a genius too. Although, most days that life seemed very far away.

Dean was on a phone call in the other room, supposedly talking to the morgue technician regarding the corpses they'd recovered from the farmhouse, but it sounded more like he was picking up a girl at a bar than doing business. But then again Dean had always been the master of mixing business with pleasure.

Sam eyed his sister closely. He'd heard about what happened on the porch earlier. He wasn't surprised. He would have done the same himself. But he was concerned. Laney had lost something after killing Yellow-Eyes. It wasn't just watching Sam die or losing Dean in a year, it was something else too. There was something lost about her. He really wanted to figure it out. He wanted to help her even though he was feeling pretty lost himself. If they couldn't help Dean out of his deal, pretty soon it was just be the two of them having to rely on each other.

"How long have you two been married?" Sam asked, as he put aside thoughts of his sister and joined the conversation. It wasn't everyday that he met a hunting couple. He was curious.

"Eight years now."

"Wow."

"Yeah, you know the family that slays together – "

"I know what you mean," Sam said with a fond look towards Laney.

Laney looked up at her brother, sensing his attention, and gave him a half-smile. Not for the first time since meeting Tamara and Isaac did a pang of regret shoot through her. She was missing Gavin. She needed someone to talk to outside of her family and he would have been the one in the past she would have gone to. But she hadn't talked to him since Boston, even though he still hadn't stopped trying to reach out to her; even though she wasn't even mad at him anymore. She just couldn't bring herself to grab that lifeline. With a deep sigh, she pushed all thoughts of him aside. There were more important matters to deal with.

Dean walked into the room as he finished up his phone call. "So that was the coroner's tech. Get this, that family's cause of death, dehydration and starvation. No signs of restraint, no violence, no struggle. It's like they just sat down and never got up."

"But there was a fully stocked kitchen just yards away," said Bobby.

"What is this then? A demon attack?" asked Sam.

"If it is, it's not like anything I ever saw," said Bobby.

"So what do we do know?" asked Dean.

"Uh, _we're_ not going to do anything," said Isaac.

"What do you mean?" demanded Laney, slamming a book down.

"You guys seem nice enough but this ain't Scooby Doo and we don't play well with others."

"Well, I think we'd cover a lot more ground if we all worked together," said Sam.

"No offense, but we're not teaming up with the damn fools who let the Devil's Gate open in the first place."

Laney walked towards Isaac. "You have no idea what you're talking about."

Dean moved forward and put a hand on his sister's shoulder to calm her and support her. "No offense? Really?"

"Isaac, like you've never made a mistake," said Tamara

"Oh yeah sure, but I've never brought on the end of the world."

"That's enough," snapped Laney.

"She's right," said Dean. "That _is_ enough."

"Guys, this isn't helping," said Sam, with a huff.

"Listen there are a couple hundred more demons out there and there ain't enough hunters in the world to handle it all. You've brought war down on us," said Isaac. "On all of us."

Laney's spine stiffened. "You really might want to rethink this. Anywhere demons are going to be, you'd find my skills more than a little helpful."

"Laney, enough," said Dean.

"What does that mean?" asked Isaac. "What are you anyway 12? 13?"

Laney took a step towards him. "Old enough to handle a gun," she said in a low threatening tone, that made Dean raise an eyebrow.

Tamara grabbed Isaac's hand and pulled him into the other room. "Okay, I think that's enough for now."

Laney kicked the legs of a chair with a curse.

"Hey, cool it now," said Dean. "Sticks and stones and all that."

"Whatever Dean. We don't need to deal with this crap. Let's just go out there ourselves and do what we do."

Sam sighed. "Maybe she's right."

"Yeah, maybe," said Dean, rubbing his hand over his face.

"I still think we can use all the extra hands," said Bobby.

Laney muttered something unintelligible but certainly angry under her breath and walked towards one of the windows and froze.

A demon. Then the sensation was gone so quickly, she wasn't sure that she even felt it.

"You okay?" asked Sam, when he thought he noticed her tensing up.

"I'm fine," Laney said, without missing a beat. "Tired."

"You haven't slept much," he said.

"Neither have you, but we've got bigger things to worry about," said Laney.

"True," said Dean, interrupting his siblings. "But tonight we're getting some sleep. We need to be rested before we face whatever it is we're facing."

"I don't want to stay here," said Laney blurted.

Sam narrowed his eyes. "You sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine. I just, I'd rather get our own place you know."

"I know exactly what you mean," said Dean. "Let's go."

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Laney came out of the bathroom running a towel through her long, dark hair. Sam was sitting on his bed, back against the headboard, flipping through one of the texts they'd borrowed from Isaac and Tamara.

"Anything interesting?" Laney asked, rubbing the bridge of her nose, trying to ease the ever present headache.

Sam looked up, took in the red rimmed eyes of his sister and knew she'd been crying in the shower. He opted to ignore it, since that seemed to be what they were all doing instead of talking about how they were feeling.

"Not really," said Sam.

"Maybe Bobby's right," said Laney, with a heavy sigh. "We're not going to find the answer in a book."

"Yeah, maybe," said Sam, slamming the book shut. "I just wish I knew where to look."

Laney sat down on the bed next to Sam, and leaned her head against his shoulder. Sam leaned his head down on hers, trying to offer all the comfort he could in the gesture, knowing it wouldn't be enough to ease her pain, or his.

"Where's Dean?" she asked, softly.

"Where do you think?"

Laney sighed. "Out on the town?"

"Yup. But you know, whatever it's okay. Let him have his fun, you know."

Laney clenched her jaw. "Sure."

Laney got up from the bed abruptly and crawled into Dean's. "I'm sure he won't be back tonight, I'm going to crash here."

"Yeah, okay," said Sam, wanting desperately to say something that could comfort his sister, but not finding the words.

Instead of resting, Laney grabbed her laptop and began researching. Sam sighed even though he really wanted to continue working too.

"Laney?"

"Yeah?" she asked distractedly. Finally looking up at him when he didn't speak.

A few moments passed by before Sam finally just smiled. "Nothing, I'm going to bed. Goodnight."

"Goodnight," she said.

Sam turned off the light and the room was engulfed in darkness, only the soft glow of Laney's laptop illuminated her face.

Sam went to sleep worried he was going to lose more than just his brother.

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Dean stumbled back into the motel room around four in the morning. He'd had a good night, but sobered up quickly when it was over. One night stands could be fun, but they often left him feeling a bit hollow and unfulfilled. Sex could only do so much. Still, it had been a pretty damn good night, he thought, as he smiled over the memory of a gorgeous brunette he'd spent some quality time with.

He stubbed his toe in the darkness before he managed to make it to the bathroom and turn on the light to help him see around the room without waking everyone up. Sam was softly snoring. Laney was in his bed, half sitting up, her laptop open and next to her. It looked liked she'd fallen asleep in the middle of something. Dean noticed how pinched her face was, in pain or distress, who knew which one. She certainly wasn't getting restful sleep.

With a sigh, he changed his clothes and washed his face before he shuffled over to the bed and pulled the laptop away from her. To Dean's disappointment she snapped awake instantly.

"Hey kiddo."

"Dean? What time is it?" she asked groggily.

"Almost five."

Laney nodded and reached to grab her laptop from him. "Oh no, time to sleep. This isn't going anywhere."

 _No, but you are,_ thought Laney.

She gave up on it, because she _was_ abosultely exhausted. She stood up from the bed and stumbled over to the couch.

"Where you going?" asked Dean.

"To sleep."

"You can sleep in the bed. Plenty of room."

"No, it's okay, you take it."

Dean frowned. In what world was it okay for him to take the bed while his sister slept on a crappy motel couch that had God only knew what growing in between the cushions.

"Aw, come on Laney, don't be stubborn."

"I'm too old to be sharing a bed with you. We've already been through this."

Dean rolled his eyes, but he was too tired to argue. Besides he knew it had less to do with her age and more to do with the fact that she'd been avoiding being close to him since Cold Oak. He understood that on a rational level, but he didn't have to like it.

He ran a weary hand through his hair as he watched her settle in on the couch.

"Goodnight Dean," she said softly.

He sighed. "Goodnight."

Suddenly Dean couldn't remember what had been so good about.

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"Wake up," said Laney, smacking Dean's bare foot.

Dean moaned and bit out a few muffled curse words against his pillow. "Let me sleep."

"Come on," she said, this time smacking his leg. "Good lead came over the police scanner, think it's our gig."

Dean slowly lifted himself up on his elbow. "Time is it?"

"Time to get up," she said loudly, making Dean's ears ring.

He cast a glance around the room. "Where's Sam?"

"Getting coffee for you."

"At least some one cares about my needs," he said with a smirk.

The corner of Laney's mouth turned twitched and Dean could've just slapped himself because it was a joke in poor taste. Laney obviously hadn't slept much after he'd gotten back and he had no idea how much sleep she'd gotten before that, but she didn't look good. Her eyes were bright with anticipation over the lead, but otherwise she just looked spent.

Dean decided a sorry might be too little too late so he got out the bed and stumbled over to his bag and into the bathroom for a shower.

Laney was cleaning up the room when Sam came in with coffee for everyone. She reached over and grabbed a cup.

"I see you got him out of bed."

"He bitched about it," said Laney. Sam heard the fondness in her tone.

Dean came out of the shower, mostly dressed and walked over to the table. "Yes, coffee, thank you." He took a sip, then pulled on his socks and boots. "So, tell me about this lead."

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They arrived at the store in downtown Lincoln just as the crime scene technicians were photographing evidence. The body had already been transported to the coroner's office. Amazingly the store was still open for business despite the gruesome scene just out front.

Sam decided to ask a few bystanders some questions, while Laney wandered around outside studying the crime scene and trying to pick up on conversations, hoping to catch something useful. Dean went into the store to question some shoppers. Laney rolled her eyes. It was a women's clothing store with lots of attractive young female shoppers. Dean was like a kid in a candy store.

Laney quickly realized she wasn't going to get anywhere outside. People weren't apt to take an 18 year old girl too seriously. They just thought she was nosy. She met up with Sam and followed him into the store.

Dean was talking to a woman and going on about making every second count. Sam rolled his eyes and cleared his throat.

"Excuse me a moment," Dean said to the woman.

"Dean, what are you doing?" Sam aksed.

"I'm comforting the bereaved," he said. "What are you doing?"

"Working. You know dead body, possible demon attack."

Dean began fake coughing and gagging. "You know, I'm sorry, I just don't have that much time left and gotta make every second count."

Sam looked down. "Yeah, yeah, man sorry."

Laney who'd been watching the exchange quietly bit her lip in anger. Dean's schtick was getting old already. As far as she was concerned it was a slap in the face to her and Sam.

"I'll be outside," she snapped and stomped off, passing a sharply dressed and confused Bobby on the way out.

Sam gave Dean a sharp look and Dean managed to look contrite – for about thirty seconds anyway.

Laney lingered around the crime scene some more. It was hard to block out the feelings of horror and morbid curiosity coming from the bystanders in the area. She concentrated hard on weeding them out until she was able to get a sense of what she'd been looking for. Demon activity. There wasn't a demon present now, but there had been. Much like the way she felt Dean's mark on him, faint, but it was definitely there.

She was reaching for her phone when it rang. _Sam._

"Yeah?" she answered.

 _"_ _Come on back in, we've got video surveillance."_

Laney raised an eyebrow. That was a good break. "Coming."

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Laney, Sam, Dean and Bobby all sat around the manager's office watching the video surveillance recorded earlier in the day. Laney wasn't sure how they'd managed to get access, but Dean could be very persuasive and not just with women.

"Look," said Sam. They watched as the perpetrator was touched by a man as he looked towards the victim.

They all raised an eyebrow. "Interesting," said Dean.

"That's our guy," said Laney.

"What makes you say that?" asked Dean.

"You mean beside it looking pretty obvious?" she asked, incredulously.

"Yeah, besides that."

"Just a feeling."

Dean opened his mouth and shut it again. He wasn't going to ask.

"Okay," said Bobby. "So what's the plan?"

"We figure out who he is," said Dean. "Laney, you should head back to the motel and do your geek thing. Let me know what you find. We'll show his mug around town, see if anyone recognizes him."

Laney sighed and rubbed at her temples. "Okay."

Bobby watched as Laney left the room. When the door shut he turned to Dean. "Is she okay?"

Dean shrugged. He had no idea.

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Bobby, Dean, and Sam sat in Bobby's car in the parking lot of a run down bar called the Old Terminal Pub, just outside Lincoln city limits.

"You sure this is the place?" asked Bobby, tiredly.

"I'm sure. I went all over this stupid town showing this guy's stupid face and they all say he comes to this stupid bar," Dean said crankily.

"It's after midnight already," said Bobby.

"Night is young," smirked Dean.

Sam's phone vibrated in his pocket. "It's Laney."

"Put her on speaker," said Dean.

"Hey baby, what do you got?" Sam asked.

 _"_ _So, our John Doe's name is Walter Rosen. He's from Oak Park just outside of Chicago. He disappeared about two weeks ago."_

"The night the Devil's Gate opened," said Dean.

 _"_ _Yup."_

"You think he's possessed?" asked Bobby

"Pretty good bet," said Dean.

"So what, he touches someone and they go stark raving mad?" asked Sam.

"These demons that got out, they're going to be able to do all sorts of things we've never seen before," said Bobby.

"You mean the demons we let out," said Sam.

"Yeah, whatever," said Dean.

"Laney, you still there?" asked Sam.

There was a sudden knock on the glass next to Dean's face and everyone in the car jumped.

Dean rolled down his window angrily. "Laney, what they hell are you doing here?"

"The more the merrier right?"

"How did you even know where we are?"

"I've got a few tricks up my sleeve," she said with a shrug.

Dean rolled his eyes and opened his door so she could scoot in next to Sam.

"You shouldn't have come," said Dean.

"And miss all the fun? No way. We finally get our first real demon lead and you want me to sit it out? I don't think so."

"How did you get here?" he asked.

"Like I said –"

Laney paused.

"What, what is it?" asked Dean, suddenly on alert.

"Demons," said Laney. "And not just our guy."

"What do you mean?" asked Sam

"I mean, like a bar full of them."

"How many?" asked Dean

"I don't know."

"And you just felt this now."

"Dean, I have other things on my mind."

"Guys," said Sam. "Can we do this later?"

"Right," said Laney, "Come on, it's showtime."

Bobby grabbed her sleeve. "We don't know what these guys are capable of. Let's just wait a minute."

"That's going to be a problem," said Sam.

"What? Why?"

"Look who just showed up."

They all looked to see Isaac and Tamara walking into the bar.

Bobby slapped the steering wheel. "Damn it!"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Everything had gone to hell in a hand basket in a heartbeat. By the time they'd been able to break into the bar, by backing Bobby's car through the front doors, fighting off demons with holy water, and Dean managing to throw the original demon they'd been tracking into the Devil's trapped trunk – _Isaac was dead_. A victim of the demons. Tamara was understandably hysterical and Laney who had never been in such a large group of very powerful demons who were all focused on killing them, had trouble regaining her equilibrium. They'd made it back to the house Tamara and Isaac had been squatting in and were trying to piece together the next steps of their plan, which basically involved just making sure no one else got killed.

Laney was researching for answers on what they were facing. She focused her mind and went over the texts they had available. Whatever those demons were, she had to figure it out and fast. Their captured demon was tied up and secure as he was going to get, but she was thrown off her game by how powerful he and his friends were; powerful in a different way than Yellow-Eyes had been, and in many ways, much more terrifying.

"I'm going back to that bar!" Tamara yelled.

"No, you can't go back there." Sam tried to reason.

"I'm going with her," said Dean.

"That's suicide!" shouted Sam.

"What difference does it make? I'm dead already," Dean said, flatly.

Laney wasn't so absorbed in what she was doing that she didn't catch Dean's remark. She could do little to react or think about it. She swallowed the hurt and shoved it down. Now wasn't the time.

"And what are you going to do? How are you going to kill them? You can't just stab them. You can't shoot them and they're not just going to stand in line and wait to be exorcised," said Sam.

"I don't care!" shouted Tamara.

"You don't even know how many of them there are!"

"Yes, we do," interrupted Laney, coming to stand between Sam and Dean. "We do," she breathed out again. The puzzle pieces had fallen together. "There are seven of them. You won't believe who were are up against."

"Who?" asked Dean.

"The Seven deadly sins; live and in the flesh."

Laney felt everyone's emotions in the room like a scream, the tension became like a tight cord around her neck and she had to mentally adjust for it. As it was, she was humming with the power of the demon in the other room. Her whole body felt like electricity was running through her veins and the ever present headache was elevated several notches, her body aching down to her bones.

Dean made a totally inappropriate comment and Laney slammed the book she'd been holding into his hands.

"What's this?" he asked.

"Bensfield's Classification of Demons. In 1589 he identified the seven deadly sins and not just as human vices but as actual devils," said Laney.

"That family, the one at the house, they were touched by sloth," Sam realized. "And the shop?"

"Envy," said Bobby. "Our customer in the next room."

Laney nodded. It was no wonder that the intensity of her senses had been off the scale. These were no ordinary demons.

"And Isaac," continued Bobby. "Touched with an awful gluttony."

"I don't give a rat's ass if they're The Three Stooges or the Four Tops. I'm going to slaughter every last one of them!" yelled Tamara.

Bobby stalked up to Tamara. "We already did it your way. You rushed in their half-cocked and guns blazing and look what happened. These demons haven't been topside in half a millennium. We're talking medieval, dark ages. We've never dealt with anything even close to this. So we're going to take a breath and figure out what our next move is!"

Tamara stilled her in spot. Contrite, but in horrible emotional pain. Laney could feel her grief rolling off her in waves. And she really felt for her. Despite Sam's resurrection from the dead, his loss was still very fresh.

Bobby's voice softened. "I'm sorry for you loss."

After a moment Tamara walked away and sat in a chair, head in her hands. "So what now?"

Laney took a deep breath. "We can question him."

"And ask him what?" asked Dean.

"What they want here, what they're after?"

Dean shrugged. "As good a question as any, I guess."

Sam nodded in agreement. "Let's do it."

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"So you know who I am huh?"

"Yes and we're not impressed," said Bobby.

"Why are you here? What are you after?" asked Sam.

"He asked you a question," snapped Dean, pulling the cap off his flask of holy water. "What do you want?"

The demon laughed. Dean threw a faceful of holy water at his face. Laney smiled at the hiss of the water making contact. Her degree of hatred for demons had shot up a few million in recent weeks.

"We've already got what we want," said Envy.

"What's that?" asked Laney.

"Freedom. We're out now. We're free. Thanks to you, my kind are everywhere. So me, I'm just celebrating. Having a little fun."

"Fun?" asked Sam.

"Yeah, fun. See some people crochet. Me, I like to see people's insides on the outside."

Tamara stepped forward. "I'm going to put you down like a dog."

"Give me a break," laughed Envy. "You really think you are better than me. Look at you Dean. You're practically a walking billboard of gluttony and lust."

Envy turned to look at Laney, his eyes narrowing, smirk growing. "You though, I can't read. Very interesting that all the gossip making the rounds is true."

"What gossip would that be?" asked Laney, moving forward. Dean grabbed her arm to pull her back.

"That's for me to know," he laughed. He then turned to Tamara.

"And you," said Envy to Tamara. "All that wrath. It's the reason you and Isaac became hunters isn't it? It's really easier to drink in all that rage than to face what happened all those years ago."

Tamara snapped and attacked the demon, throwing several punches. Bobby, Dean, and Sam moved forward to restrain her. Laney stood back, silently cheering her on.

"She just proved my point. You're all animals and you'll be slaughtered like animals. The others, they're coming for me."

Dean stepped forward. "Maybe, but they're not going to find you. Cause we're sending you straight to Hell." He straightened up. "Someone send this clown packing."

"With pleasure," said Tamara. She took the book from Bobby and began reciting the Latin that would send Envy back to Hell.

Laney wanted to stay and watch but decided this victory belonged to Tamara. She followed her brothers and Bobby into the next room.

"I don't think we'll have to worry about hunting them," said Bobby.

"What do you mean?" asked Sam.

"I think this joker is right. They're going to come gunning for us. They won't quit easy."

Dean nodded. "Well, why don't you guys take Tamara and head for the hills. I'll hold them off, buy you some time."

"Are you crazy?" snapped Laney.

"Yeah, Dean, you're insane, forget about it. It's not going to happen," said Sam.

"They're right," Bobby said.

"There are six of them. We're outmanned, we're outgunned. We'll be dead by dawn," said Dean.

"Hey, at least these guys can't use their powers on me. We can use that to our advantage," said Laney, thoughtfully.

"No way," said Dean. "If you're not going to let me head them off alone, we're sure as hell not going to use as some kind of secret weapon."

"Why not?" asked Laney, defensively.

"Listen," said Bobby. "This isn't helping. The fact is, there is no place for us to run that they won't find us."

"If we're going down, we're going down together," said Sam.

"Sam's right," said Laney, with a sigh. "One for all, all for one, or some such crap."

"Isn't that the Three Musketeers?" asked Dean, with a smirk.

"Dean!" Sam admonished.

"Okay, okay. Sorry. We're fighting then...let's not make it easy on them."

Just then Laney felt the Envy's power go out like a switch had been flipped. The electricity in her body snapped through her like a swift current and left her feeling oddly hollow. She sagged a little in her spot and took a step back.

"You okay?" asked Sam, putting a hand on her back.

"I'm good," she said as Tamara walked in.

"Demon's gone."

"The guy?" asked Sam.

"He didn't make it."

 _Right, the guy_ , thought Laney. She forgot that there were actual people whose bodies were being hijacked. There wasn't much she could do about. Collateral damage. She was learning to accept the dark side of hunting easier than she had before. She'd lost a lot. Stood to lose more. It was hard to wallow in the gray areas of their profession.

"Well, let's batten down the hatches then," said Bobby.

They all got to work.

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Laney and her brothers sat in the front room of the first floor of the house, stocking holy water in every container they could find and arming themselves in every way they could.

"Stick with Sam," said Dean. "Whatever happens, you stick with Sam."

"Where are you going to be?" asked Laney.

"Don't worry about me."

"Dean, seriously. They can't do anything to me."

"Maybe not with their powers, but they're still strong. They could take you in hand to hand you know."

Laney's shoulders fell with a sigh. "Just don't do anything stupid."

Dean half-smiled. "I'm not going to – what?" he asked. Laney's face had paled considerably in the span of three seconds.

"They're here," she said, just before the radio in the room fileld with static and the lights began flickering.

"All of them?" Dean asked.

Laney nodded. "Oh yeah," she said, taking deep breaths. "And they're pissed."

She closed her eyes and mentally built her walls as best she could. It was different then the cemetery. All those escaping demons had been mostly background noise, interested in escaping and not paying her any attention. But these were focused, hunting, and unbelievably powerful. Their energy filled her up to the point she felt like she was going to burst with pressure.

Dean shot his sister a worried look as he got to his feet. She didn't look too hot. But her eyes were still alert and focused and that was the best he could ask for, because they all had to be on their 'A' game if they were going to make it out in one piece.

"Okay then," said Dean. "Here we go."

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It was a bit of a daze after that. A demon possessing the body of Isaac pleaded for Tamara to save him. She knew it wasn't him – not really – but she burst through the front door anyway, breaking the salt lines and letting the remaining sins inside the house.

Bobby managed to get one – _Sloth_ – immediately trapped under a Devil's trap.

Dean drew one upstairs, unfortunately leaving another three on the loose and after Sam and Laney, who found themselves cornered in one of the larger rooms.

Sam pulled his sister behind him, although Laney resisted. She relented when she saw how many demons had followed them. They couldn't use powers on her, but Sam had the height, weight, and muscle advantage over her. They were backed into a corner, when one of the demons, in the body of a tall man, stopped suddenly.

Laney silently cursed. He'd spotted the Devil's trap on the ceiling. Using his powers he cracked the ceiling causing it to crumble and the trap to be rendered useless. Laney felt herself grow heavy under the assault on her senses.

"Come on, you really think something like that's going to stop me? Me?"

"Let me guess, you're Pride?" asked Sam.

"Yes, the root of all sin. And you must be Sam Winchester – boy king – the prodigal son. I've heard of you. And now that the yellow-eyed demon is dead, you're fair game now. Thanks by they way," he added with a nod towards Laney.

Sam grabbed his sister's hand and pulled her to stand against him.

"You have quite a following Delaney. And I don't mean that in a good way," he sneered and then he bolted forward grabbing Sam and easily throwing him to the floor.

"Sam!" Laney shouted.

Another demon advanced on her and Laney immediately went into the defensive mode, for all the good it did her. One of the demons – a female – punched Laney good and hard sending her crashing into the wall and slamming her head to the floor.

She heard Sam's choked shout of her name and that was about it. She hovered in between darkness and light, making out the far away sounds of a struggle, screams, panting breath, the scuffing of shoes on the old rotted hardwood floors. She couldn't do a damn thing. The pain in her head throbbed with her pulse and Laney never wished harder that she would just pass out.

It didn't happen.

After an indeterminate amount of time passed Laney felt herself being lifted and cradled in strong, unyielding arms. She made a vain attempt to push free.

"Laney, it's Sam, it's okay now."

She immediately stilled and turned into Sam's embrace. He tightened his hold and began moving. She let herself drift. Sam was alive and she could still feel Dean and Bobby. They were alive too.

That was all she needed to know for the moment.

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Sam ran into the hallway, sister bundled in his arms, and nearly ran right into Dean.

"Laney?" he asked, gruffly. "What happened?"

"It's okay Dean," she said, voice wobbly.

"Yeah, you sound great."

"I just got my bell rung," she said, voice still slurred.

"Are we secured?" asked Sam.

Dean nodded. "Yeah, we're good. Got some exorcising to do, but we're good. What happened to you?"

"You'll never believe it."

"Hold that thought," said Dean. "Come on let's get her downstairs."

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Sam laid Laney down on an old beat up couch that had seen better days. She hurt so bad at the moment she didn't mind the mildew smell coming from the upholstery. She closed her eyes to combat the spinning of the room and took several deep breaths.

Dean knelt down beside her to do a cursory medical examination. He opened her eyes and shined a penlight into them despite her grumpy protestations.

"It's okay Dean," she repeated. "Knock on the head, no concussion. I'm not seeing double."

She kept one eye open and caught Dean's frown. "Yeah, well I'm no letting you sleep for awhile. You need to stay awake."

"I know the drill," said Laney.

Dean patted her hand. "If you wanted to get out of cleaning up this mess you could have just let me know. Didn't need to go and get knocked around."

Laney snorted. "Yeah, stupid me."

"Just relax here. Take it easy – and don't go to – "

"Sleep, I know," she said. "Here, help me," she added. She reached out a hand to her brother. "It's better if I'm sitting up."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

Laney waited for the room to stop spinning before she opened her eyes again to find Sam looking very concerned. She smiled at him. "Go on, do what you need to do," she said. "I'm just going to sit her for awhile and wait for the fireworks to stop going off in my head."

He ruffled her hair and kissed the top of her head.

Laney listened as Bobby performed an exorcism in the next room. Sam and Dean came down the stairs after a moment, hauling a body. She heard snippets of their conversation about a demon killing knife and a mysterious savior.

If Laney didn't feel like such crap she would have demanded a full story. But as it was, it was an effort to remain sitting upright.

The men continued working, Laney caught glimpses of Tamara here and there. She'd exorcised the demon from Isaac's body and had been sitting with him for a couple of hours. Laney had time to contemplate what Pride had mentioned about her being popular but to watch her back and also how Sam was fair game now. She didn't need him running around with a target on his back, while she was trying to save Dean, who was already marked for Hell.

It never ended.

It was just after dawn when her brothers tiredly walked back into the house. "You ready to go?" Dean asked.

Laney nodded, wincing at the movement.

"You okay?" Sam asked softly.

"I'm fine," she muttered.

Sam reached out a hand and pulled his sister to her feet. He held onto her elbow as he lead her outside. She followed them to a pit full of the dead demon hosts.

"Any survive?" she asked.

"Yeah, the big guy and the girl," said Bobby as he looked at the pit of corpses. "Lifetime of therapy bills…"

Laney glanced across the yard to see Isaac's body on a pyre ready to be burned by his wife.

"That's more than I can say for these poor bastards," said Dean.

"Bobby that knife – you ever heard of a knife that could kill a demon?" asked Sam.

Laney's eyes narrowed and looked at her brother. "What knife?"

"I'll fill you in later, " he said.

"Before tonight, I would have said no such thing existed."

"Yeah, who was that masked chick?" smirked Dean. "And a better question would be why could a girl fight better than you?"

"Ha, ha Dean. Three demons at once and our little sister to protect."

"Hey, whatever gets you through the night."

Laney didn't know what she was missing but it was big, but there were still bigger issues. "I've got a troubling question for you," she said.

"What's that?" asked Dean.

"If we let out the seven deadly sins, what else did we let out?"

"Yeah, that is troubling," said Dean. He struck a matchbook and threw it into the pit, watching the corpses burn.

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Laney got up from the bed and stretched her sore body. Dean had demanded she take the bed, more cause he wanted to keep an eye on her during the night. She'd been too tired and sore to argue, but she'd scooted as far away from him as humanly possible without rolling off the bed.

She hopped into the shower and let the hot water work the soreness from her muscles. The roar in her head was down to that ever present dull ache, and her blood sugar was in the basement. She hadn't eaten much over the last few days. With a promise to remedy the situation as soon as possible, she scrubbed off the grime from the last job and washed her thick hair twice. By the time she re-entered the room she was clean, refreshed, and feeling semi-human. Dean was awake and flipping through channels on the television. Laney was about to question the absence of their brother when Sam came walking through the front door, balancing drinks and a couple of plastic bags.

"Just what the doctor ordered," said Laney. She grabbed the bags from him and began pulling containers out of the bag.

Sam smiled. "You look like you're feeling better."

"As soon as I eat, I'll be good as new."

Dean walked over to the table yawning. "Good."

They all dug into the food in a quiet and comfortable silence. Everything felt heartbreakingly normal. It was a little much to bear for Laney. But she kept her mouth shut and tried to enjoy it. How many more of these moments would they have? Dean's year was slipping away and they weren't any closer to a solution.

"So where to next?" asked Dean, after he finished off a mound of bacon.

Sam chewed his omelet a moment before he looked up. "I was thinking Louisiana, maybe."

"Little early for Mardi Gras, isn't it?" asked Dean, with a smirk.

"I – uh- I was talking to Tamara and she told me about this voodoo priestess outside of Shreveport that might be able to help us out – you know – with your demon deal."

Dean shrugged his shoulder. "Nah."

"Nah? What do you man "nah"?" asked Sam.

"Yeah, Dean, we've got to follow every lead we can get," said Laney.

"Guys, it's a wild goose chase. No hoodoo spell's going to break this deal."

"We don't know that," said Sam.

"Yes we do. We're not going and that's that. How about Vegas?" he asked, waggling his eyebrows.

"Yeah, well you know what? Laney and I have been busting our asses trying to keep you alive Dean and you act like you couldn't care less," snapped Sam.

"It's like you've got some kind of death wish," said Laney.

"It's not like that," said Dean.

"Then what's it like?" asked Sam.

"Guys – just forget it."

"No Dean, tell us."

Dean sighed heavily. "If we trap the crossroads demon or try to welch out of the deal in any way – you die Sam. Okay? You die."

There was a sharp intake of breath from Laney.

"Those are the terms of the deal," continued Dean. "There's no way out of it. And if you two try to find a way, so help me God, I'm going to stop you."

"How could you make that deal?" asked Sam, eyes growing glassy.

"Cause I couldn't live with you dead. I couldn't do it."

"What you did was selfish Dean."

"You're right. It was, but I'm okay with that."

"I'm not," said Sam.

"Me neither," said Laney, barely croaking the words out, because she felt like the rug had been pulled out from under her again.

"Tough," said Dean. "After everything I've done for this family I think I'm entitled. Truth is I'm tired. And it's like there's a light at the end of the tunnel."

"That's hellfire," said Sam.

"Yeah, well whatever. Whatever. The two of you are alive and well. I feel good - for the first time in a long time. I got a year to live and I'd like to make the most of it. So what do you say we kill some evils sons of bitches and raise a little hell?"

"You're unbelievable," said Sam

"Very true," said Dean, with a smile.

Laney couldn't fathom it. Dean was smiling, like it was all a big joke, as if he'd just commented on the state of the weather. Laney felt everything inside her, the grief, the anger, the pain, boiling in the pit of her stomach, all of it reaching critical mass.

Dean's deal was unbreakable? Save one brother, lose the other. She didn't know how she was supposed to be okay with that, how she was supposed to live with that.

"I'm glad this is funny to you," said Laney. "I'm so sorry I've made your life so hard that you can't stomach another year. I'm so sorry we've driven you to that." She jumped up from her seat and began pacing the floor, her face furious. "What about my choice Dean? You didn't bother to give me one. And I'm supposed to just live with this and not doing anything. I lose Sam once and now I'm going to lose you and I'm just supposed to stand by and let it happen?"

Dean felt a bit contrite. Maybe his delivery of the news had been a little flippant. He hadn't allowed himself to think about what his siblings were feeling. He just wanted to make the most of his year left.

"Yeah, you are," he said, softly.

"Fuck you, Dean!" Laney shouted. And with that she stormed out the front door, slamming it behind her with everything she had.

Dean made a move to follow, because he couldn't remember ever hearing his sister sound so angry, but he stilled himself. He hadn't wanted to make her feel like he was leaving her because he was tired of her. That wasn't it at all. He just, he was dealing as best he could and what came out of his mouth wasn't always what he'd intended. He had absolutely no words to say that were going to make anything better, so he let it go.

Sam looked at his brother, mouth agape.

"Let her cool off," said Dean. He walked into the bathroom to shower.

Laney didn't go far. She walked down to the edge of the parking lot where there was a row of vacant picnic tables. She sat down and ran a hand through her still damp hair, pulling her phone out of her pocket and dialing.

It was answered on the first ring. _"Hello?"_

"Gavin? It's Laney. I really need you."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N; So, I know it's been an incredibly long time since I updated, but I'm back! I hope to be more consistent with Part 4. I will be moving away from following episodes closely, but still follow storyline and canon for the most part. Enjoy!**

Chapter 3

It was couple of days later that they were in some diner in a small Indiana town. Laney had taken the time to cool down. Dean gave her space. And she and Sam had come to an agreement that they were still going to find some way to break Dean's deal; one that didn't involve Sam dying or anyone giving up their souls. They'd been taking every opportunity to work when their brother wasn't around, which had been fairly frequently. He'd spent most of his nights out on the town and half the day recovering. They were still keeping an eye out for omens, but so far it had been quiet.

"What do you mean you don't think it will work, Bobby? It's a demon-dispelling ritual."

Sam was on the phone with Bobby. Laney listening in. They'd gotten a lead on a ritual and were hoping it was a ticket.

"Well maybe we got the translation wrong. We can't just let Dean fry in hell."

Laney suddenly kicked Sam under the chair to get his attention. Sam's head snapped up, the annoyed expression on his face softening as he followed the bob of his sister's head to look out the window.

"Crap. It's Dean. "Yeah, I gotta go. No. Okay. Never mind."

Sam snapped his phone shut just as Dean entered, giving his siblings a suspicious look.

"Who was that?" he asked, casually.

"I was ordering a pizza."

Dean glanced around. "Dude, you realize we're in a restaurant right?"

"Yeah, well I wanted pizza," said Laney. "And they don't have any."

"Okay," he said. "Well, anyway. I think I got something," he said, pulling out a newspaper and laying it on the table.

"What is it?" asked Sam.

"Cicero, Indiana. Guy falls on his own power saw."

Laney's shook her head. "That's it? One power saw? And?"

"Well yeah."

"You think that's a case?" asked Sam.

"I don't know, could be."

"Sounds like a freak accident to me," said Laney.

Dean frowned. "Okay, there is something better in Cicero than just a case."

Laney rolled her eyes and sat back in the booth seat. She had a pretty good idea where things were going.

"Like what?" asked Sam.

Dean waggled his eyebrows. "Lisa Braeden."

"Should I even ask?"

"Remember that road trip I took about 8 years ago. You and Laney were in Orlando with Dad."

"Oh, yeah, the five states in five days thing," said Sam.

Laney vaguely remembered that trip. She was about 9 years old and she had looked forward to Orlando because she'd been dying to Disney World. Of course that hadn't happened. Just another example of disappointment in her young life.

"Yeah, well it didn't exactly go that way. I spent most of that time in Lisa Braeden's loft.".

"So, let me get this straight. You want to go all the way to Cicero for this one chick?"

"Dude, she was a yoga teacher. It was the bendiest weekend of my life. Come on, have a heart man. It's my dying wish."

Laney's jaw clenched and her leg strated bouncing up and down.

"How many dying wishes are you going to get?" asked Sam

"As many as I can squeeze out," said Dean. "Come on smile. I know I'll be smiling after 24 hours with Gumby. Guess that makes me Pokey."

"I'm not going," Laney blurted out.

"Oh come on," said Dean. "I'm sure there's a case there too."

"I don't care," said Laney.

"Come on, let's not start this," said Dean, annoyed.

"I didn't say you shouldn't go. I just said that I'm not going."

"So, explain to me exactly how that works?" asked Dean, crossing his arms.

"I'm going to Lawrence to Missouri's. Just for a few days. However long it takes for you to finish your case," she said, using finger quotes around the word.

"Why do you need to go to Missouri's?" asked Sam. He was confused. She hadn't mentioned anything to him earlier.

Dean's hackles settled a little. Sam seemed just as surprised by Laney's proclamation as he was, so at least he knew they weren't up to something.

"I just need a little time to get my head straight," she said, running her hands through her hair. "After Lincoln, I don't' know, all those demons in one room as powerful as they were, it was little – you know – overwhelming. I just want Missouri's help, that's all, no big deal. And you really don't need me on this case."

Dean hadn't really considered how the seven deadly sins had affected her. She'd mentioned off hand that it had been like nothing she'd ever felt before, but she didn't' elaborate and he hadn't pushed. Everything was so off in their world since the deal. On top of that Sam had told him about what Pride had said about Laney watching her back.

"Okay," Dean relented. "We'll drop you in Lawrence and then head to Cicero."

"That's a little out of the way don't you think? And anyway, you don't need to bother. I bought a plane ticket."

"A plane ticket?"

"Yes, a plane ticket to fly on a plane, you know those things with wings that get places ten times faster than driving? I'll fly."

"Thank you smart ass."

"Just get me to the airport in Indianapolis."

"I don't know. I think I'd feel more comfortable if I dropped you off in Lawrence."

Laney huffed loudly and leaned forward. "I don't really care what makes you more comfortable. This isn't about what you want. It's not all about you Dean! I'm telling you I need something now, okay. We've indulged your every whim these last few weeks. You can do something for me now."

She pushed her way out of the restaurant booth and went flying through the diner door. She walked up to the Impala and leaned back against the trunk. Her face was twisted with anger.

Dean's jaw was clenched. It wasn't like he hadn't deserved it. She was right. She and Sam had been letting him run amuck as much as he'd been able to between cases. And Laney was asking for help and he'd never been able to deny her. He wouldn't start now.

Dean caught Sam's eye. "I guess we're going to Indianapolis," he mumbled under his breath.

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The car ride to Indianapolis was tense and filled with stifling silence. No one said a word. Dean played his Metallica louder than usual if only to drown out the voices in his head. He was filled with a bone deep in born need to stop the car and turn around, not let his sister go anywhere without him. Yeah, she'd gone to Missouri's before. But he'd dropped her off, made sure everything was safe. He'd even had Bobby in town for back up. This was like when he'd left her at college in Boston – terrifying.

But sooner rather than later Laney was going to have to get by in the world without him and he needed to accept that he wasn't going to be there to have her back anymore. The thought was sobering and painful. So he shut it off and drowned it out. He'd salve his wounds with Lisa and move on and do it all over again in some other random town.

Sam had been watching his sister surreptitiously in the rearview mirror, sneaking glances at her and hoping to make eye contact. He needed to know if she was up to something. If this was about Dean's deal and if she'd found something that might help. He couldn't let her do it alone. But she'd steadfastly ignored him and she'd been pretty upfront and blunt about their hunt for a solution. She'd have shared. He knew it. At least he thought he did. Everyone was hurting and no one was really themselves these days.

They pulled off the exit to Indianapolis International Airport. Laney relaxed by degrees. She couldn't wait to get away.

Dean pulled into the departures area and he and Sam both got out of the car. Laney breathed a sigh of relief. They weren't going to try and walk her to her gate. _Good._

Sam handed her bag over to her and pulled her in for a hug. "Call me when you get there, okay?"

"Of course," she said, going up on her tiptoes to place a kiss on his cheek. "I love you."

"Love you too."

She turned to Dean suddenly not really sure how to act – only partly sorry for her outburst at the diner. Even if she'd been right, she didn't like to hurt the people she loved and she knew the barbs stung deep – not that he hadn't been flinging barbs of his own left and right for weeks.

Dean rubbed the back of his neck, a sign he was nervous.

"If you do find a case, be careful okay?"

Dean nodded. "Yeah, you take care of yourself too. Call me when you're ready to come home and we'll swing by and get you."

"Yeah, sure," said Laney, swallowing the lump in her throat. She suddenly wasn't so sure she wanted to spend some of the 300 and something days that Dean had left in his year, away from him.

Dean tentatively opened his arms to her and she fell into them with a fierce hug and another plea to be careful in his ear.

Her brothers got in the car and waited until she'd made it inside the terminal before they finally drove off. With a deep sigh Laney went to the airline ticket counter.

"Hi, how can I help you?"

"I'm checking in for my flight."

"Okay, where are you headed today?"

Laney passed her ticket over the counter along with her photo I.D. "Chicago."

****SN***SN***SN***SN***SN**S*N***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN

The plane ride to Chicago had been too brief for Laney to work out the knots in her stomach. Maybe, this hadn't been her most brilliant idea. But lately she'd been running her life on her emotions instead of logic, completely opposite of how she'd been growing up. But desperate times called for desperate measures and this was about her needing some objectivity in her life.

After she landed she called Sam and let him know that she'd arrived safe and sound. When he tried to question her she quickly said that Missouri had arrived and she'd call him later. She'd never been a great liar.

Any trepidation or doubt she'd been feeling instantly melted away when she saw him. A shining beacon of calm.

And damn good looking too.

He met her at the bottom of the escalator arms wide open and not the least bit hesitant. She threw her arms around him and breathed him in.

"Gavin," she said, simply.

After a moment he pulled back to get a good look at her. She looked tired and worn out, stressed and scared and beautiful as ever. "Hey," he said with a smile.

Laney smiled back and grabbed his open hand in hers, for the first time in weeks she felt some peace.

***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN**SN***SN***SN***SN***SN**SN*

"So this is it," said Gavin, pointing.

Laney smiled proudly. "Your own martial arts studio."

"Yup."

"Rich clients then, huh?" Laney smirked. They were in a ritzier part of downtown Chicago.

"Pays the bills," he said. "I have a smaller place out in the suburbs, just for kids."

Laney smiled and could bet that he didn't charge those kids a dime. "I can't believe you put this all together in such a short time."

"Well, actually, I've had the space for awhile, just kept getting sidetracked."

A dark shadow passed over Laney's face. She knew what he was talking about. She looked up at him. He didn't look upset or anything. Just stating a fact.

Gavin drew in a sharp breath. "So, what do you say we just squash the elephant in the room now so we can get on with the rest of your time here?"

"Which elephant would that be?" Laney asked, nonchalantly.

"Boston."

"Oh yeah, Boston." As if she hadn't been thinking about it for months.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I had this whole speech planned, but it just doesn't seem right. So, all I can say is I'm sorry and I will never hurt you like that again. I promise."

"I forgive you," said Laney. And she really did. "But no promises."

Gavin shook his head. "Yeah, okay."

Laney took a deep breath, glad that was brief and over with. She shifted uncomfortably not sure where they went from there.

Gavin smiled at her. "Come on, I have a class in ten minutes. You can watch."

***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN**SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***NS**

Laney was awed. She'd been watching Gavin teach his class for the last hour and was just overwhelmed with his skills. She'd known he was martial arts specialist on top of being pretty damn good with computers. But this was where he really shined. He glowed with the joy of it. The same way Dean did when he was on a hunt. It was his niche, his passion and it was intoxicating to watch him in his element. It stirred something deeper in her than before. It went beyond having feelings for him. It felt like something more.

She ignored it, because her life didn't have room for it. But she needed him and she wasn't going to let him go.

Gavin finished up his class and walked up to her toweling off the sweat from a hard work out.

"What did you think?"

"Amazing," said Laney, eyes bright.

Gavin felt himself blush. For some reason hearing that from her was better than any trophy he'd ever won or any victory he'd ever had. His feelings for her had not changed, only grown, since she's reached out to him again.

"I'm glad you were impressed."

"More than that," said Laney, wonder still in her voice. "I actually had an idea."

"Food? Cause I'm starving."

"Well that too. But I was thinking that maybe you could train me."

"Train you?"

"yeah, I don't have a lot of time here, but I think you can teach me a lot, to help me on a hunt. Dean's taught me a lot, but he's nowhere near as skilled. Please?" Laney flashed him the famous Winchester smile. And Gavin was like putty.

"Okay, okay, I'll do it. Only because I want you to be safe. Whatever is takes."

Laney smiled triumphantly. "When do we start?"

"Food first. I was thinking some of Chicago's famous deep dish pizza."

Laney's stomach rumbled at the thought. She really hadn't eaten a decent meal in almost a month.

"Extra pepperoni and it's a deal."

***SN***SN***SN***SN**S*N***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN**S*N***SN***SN*

"Dude, we totally have a case here," said Dean

Sam listened to his brother for a couple of minutes, his mind still reeling from meeting the mystery savior from Lincoln, some chick named Ruby, who seemed to know an awful lot about him and his family.

"Okay," said Sam. "I'll see what I can dig up."

"Good. Uh – did you talk to Laney today?"

Sam sighed. "She sent me a text. She's good. I told her you'd call her tonight."

Dean cleared his throat. "Uh – yeah – okay."

Sam hung up the phone with a roll of his eyes. Dean was avoiding Laney. Laney was avoiding both of them. It was annoying to say the least. He just wanted to the case over as quick as possible so they could pick up Laney and get back to the business of saving Dean from his deal.

With that thought Sam got to work on their case.

***SN***SN***SN***SN**S*N***SN**SN**S*N**S*N**SN**SN**SN**SN**NSN**SN*SN*S*NS

By the end of Laney's second day in Chicago, she was exhausted, yet exhilarated. Gavin had given her a crash course in self-defense and some serious new tactics. She felt empowered and alive. The time with Gavin had filled her with a sense of peace and normalcy that she didn't even realize she'd been craving.

The last two days had been filled with training and Gavin showing her his favorite sites in town. It had been fun and easygoing. They hadn't once talked about dean's deal, her powers, or hunting. They'd talked about movies, books, computer hacking, places they wanted to visit – all things not hunting.

She stood in Gavin's loft apartment staring out the window at the lights of the city. It was a hot, humid, Chicago night. Gavin was teaching a late class and she'd come up to shower and change after hers. It was all so normal. She'd never really gotten a taste like this before. College had given her a glimpse. But college had been filled with strangers and fear of the unknown. This was different. Gavin was here with her and they knew each other. He knew everything about her and he still wanted to be around. It filled her heart with a joy – a joy that was tempered by thoughts of her brothers still out on the road. But a joy that she was sure she could carry for awhile.

Laney's phone rang and broke her tranquil silence.

It was Dean. She was going to have to take the call. She'd been putting it off for awhile already.

"Hey Dean."

"Hey kid, how's it going?"

"All is well. How's the case?"

"We think we'll be wrapping it up tonight."

Laney couldn't help but frown deeply. She'd only had two days, she wanted more.

"You still there?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. So what are you hunting?"

"You won't believe it. Something we've never hunted before – changelings."

"Changelings? Seriously?"

"Yup."

"Huh, sorry I'm missing that."

Laney was surprised to find that she really wasn't all that sorry.

"Uh- so what happened with Lisa Braeden?"

Dean frowned. He didn't want to talk about it too much. Lisa had a son and for a brief moment he thought it might be his. He was partially disappointed to find out he wasn't. But at the same time it had made him nostalgic. Thinking of Laney has a child growing up. Ben could have been a second chance to get it right. Not that anything was wrong with how Laney had become. He just was beginning to realize how sorry he was that she had grown up in the hunting life.

"Dean, you still there?"

"Yeah, yeah. Sorry. Uh – it's a long story. Anyway, I think we'll be ready to head out of here tomorrow. So, we'll be on our way to Lawrence."

"Don't bother," said Laney. "Just let me know when you're ready and I'll catch a flight to Indy again."

Dean opened his mouth to protest, but shut it. He really didn't have a good reason to. Indianapolis was way closer drive than Lawrence and well, he didn't much like going to Lawrence if he didn't have to.

"Yeah, okay, we'll call you when we wrap things up then."

"Okay. Be careful."

"Yup, talk to you later."

Dean flipped his phone shut and tossed it on the bed. He missed his sister even though it had only been a few days, but at the same he dreaded her return. He didn't know that he could give her the support she was seeking from him. She wanted him to make it better like always and he couldn't. She was angry at him and rightfully so.

He sat down on the bed and rubbed a hand through his hair. Seeing Lisa's son Ben, had brought forth a longing in him that he didn't even know he had. A normal life with a family. Ben had reminded him of Laney growing up. He missed little Laney, so bright and questioning and loyal. She was still the same way, but there was a hardness to her now that no one her age should have had. He wished he could back and do it all over again.

He wished a lot of things.

***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN

Laney grabbed the keys to Gavin's apartment as she headed out the door. He was teaching his last class of the evening and she wanted to go grab dinner and some movies to hang out since she was sure it was her last night in town. She was going to miss him more than she wanted to admit.

She walked down the stairs and was surprised when she saw him rounding the corner.

"Hey," she said. "I thought you were going to be at least another hour."

"I let class out early," he said. "Thought we'd grab dinner and a movie."

"I was thinking the same thing. It looks like it's going to storm out tonight though," she said, watching the darkening skies in the distance.

Gavin studied her face for awhile. "What is it?"

She sighed. Gavin had gotten pretty good at reading her.

"Dean called. They are just about done with their case. I'll probably be leaving tomorrow."

Gavin frowned deeply, not afraid to let his disappointment show. "Sometimes I wish your brothers weren't such good hunters."

Laney laughed. "Yeah this was a quick one."

"How about we pick up some pizza and a few movies and just veg out?"

"Sounds good to me," said Laney.

***SN ***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN*

A couple hours later and Laney was sprawled out on the couch next to Gavin watching a comedy special on cable, laughing her ass off, contented as could be. Dinner was nice and relaxed. The ease with which Gavin moved around the kitchen was funny and charming to watch. Sam and Dean weren't much for cooking, but then again, life on the road never allowed for such things.

The skies had opened up over Chicago and the mid-summer storm was violent, but had cooled the air considerably. There was something cozy about being holed up with a guy she was crazy about while he was being domestic and accommodating and kept looking at her like she was the only thing in the world. It was something she could totally get used to.

Sadly, it was all going to end. It was in the middle of hilarious bit about restaurant etiquette that Laney's laughter abruptly broke into sobs. She didn't know exactly why. Maybe it was all the buildup of knowing that she was going to have to leave it all. For four days they hadn't talked about Dean or his deal or what she was going to do about it. It was four days of pretending all ways normal, living a normal life.

Gavin hit the mute button on the television and got up from his spot. He sat on the coffee table facing her. He didn't look particularly worried. He had pretty much expected her to give in to the stresses of her life at some point. He took both of her hands in his and squeezed. She looked up at him through teary eyes.

"I don't know what to do," she sobbed. Then she put her arms around him and it was all the invitation Gavin needed. He pulled her in against his chest and held her close. He rode out the storm.

It was a good half hour before Laney really winded down. When she was done, she felt gutted out and raw, but at the same time oddly refreshed. In Gavin's arms she felt like she could face anything now.

She wiped her face and pulled back.

"Better?" Gavin gave her a small smile.

Laney nodded. "Much." She chuckled softly. "I feel like I should be embarrassed by that, but I'm not."

"Good. All of this stuff with your family – with Dean's deal – it's been eating you up inside. At some point you've got to let it go or it's going to eat you alive."

"I don't know how to get through to him – to Dean."

"Maybe you can't. He's got to figure it out by himself. He's facing Hell in less than a year and I'm sure he's terrified. But he's still going to protect you and Sam anyway he can until then. That's who he is, it's what he does."

"Yeah, I know. But he won't let us help. He's pushing us away."

"Don't let him," said Gavin. "He's the most hard headed stubborn ass person I've ever met – next to you anyway."

Laney lightly punched him the arm. "I guess sometimes I just need to talk to someone else. It's just me and Sam and Dean and it's suffocating sometimes, this life. We have to be careful about who we let in, who we share with."

"You don't have to be that way with me. Anything you need, I'm there, okay?"

"The last thing I want to do is drag you into this."

"Are we going to go there again? You trying to protect me? It's too late. I'm here and I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going to try anymore."

"you can't leave your life here."

"I didn't say I was going to. I'm just saying if you need me call me. I'm here. You know where I am and you are welcome here anytime. I mean it."

Laney smiled and hugged Gavin again, lump heavy in her throat. "I don't know what I would do without you."

Gavin smiled and hugged her tightly back. He felt the exact same way.

***SN***SN****SN***SN***SN**S*N**SN***SN***SN***SN**SN***SN**SN***SN**S*N*S*N**S

Dean's call came early the next morning. Laney answered it quickly, frowning when she saw the caller ID, because she knew what was coming.

"We're all done here," he said.

Laney sighed. "Yeah, okay. There's a flight leaving here in a couple of hours. I'll see you at the airport."

"Sure, kid. Are you okay?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"You sound – disappointed. If you need some more time at Missouri's, I'll uh – I'll understand."

"No, it's okay Dean. I miss you and Sammy. I'm ready to come home."

Laney couldn't see it, but she could sense the wide smile from over the airwaves.

"See ya soon."

Laney flipped the phone shut and shuffled into the kitchen where Gavin was brewing a pot of coffee.

"Leaving?"

Laney nodded. "Yeah, there's a 10:15."

"I'll take you to the airport."

"No, it's okay," Laney nodded. "I'll take a cab."

Gavin nodded. She didn't want to deal with a goodbye at the airport. He got that.

"Everything I said last night. I meant."

"I know. Me too."

Laney grabbed a cup of coffee and smiled sadly at him. She went to her room and packed.

Gavin carried her back downstairs to the waiting cab for her. The summer rains from the night before had given way to a cooler day. It was still gray and gloomy out. Kind of fitting of her mood, she thought, wryly.

Gavin put her bag in the trunk of the taxi and slammed it shut.

"I guess this is goodbye," he said.

"Until next time?" offered Laney.

"I like that," he said.

Laney smiled brightly and it took Gavin's breath away. He didn't know how he was supposed to let her go. Let her go back to a dangerous life on the road of hunting, while she was facing the biggest threat ever. Gavin was ignorant of all that had happened. He knew all the details – knew all about the demons that had been set free. That a war was on the horizon – a war that he was about to let her go out and fight without him.

But it wasn't his fight. He had a life. A future. It didn't involve hunting.

Gavin reached for her and hugged her close. He placed a kiss on her forehead. Laney was sure she was blushing. She awkwardly turned and got settled in the back of the taxi. He leaned into the window.

"Call me when you get home."

"I will."

"Be safe."

"I promise I will."

Gavin reluctantly stepped away from the door. The taxi was rolling into traffic when Gavin jogged back up to the window.

"Laney," he called out.

Laney poked her head out. "You alright?"

"I love you."

Laney's jaw dropped. Before she could respond the taxi had pulled away and left Gavin standing alone in the busy street.

Laney collapsed back in her seat. It wasn't exactly a surprise. He had never really been shy about his feelings for her. But everything was so different than it was months earlier.

And for the first time in her life, Laney didn't want to go home.

***SN***SN***SN***SN**SN***SN***SN**S*N***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN***SN

Laney smiled and felt her heart lighten. She heard the Impala before she saw it. The sound familiar to her since birth. When it came into view she waved until it pulled into the curbside. Sam jumped out and hugged her, lifting her off the ground.

"Missed ya' babe!"

Laney smiled and reached up on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. "I missed you too, Sasquatch."

"What am I , chopped liver?"

"Dean!"

Laney bounded over to him and hugged him. She felt a lump forming in her throat at the new ever present feeling she got from his demon mark on his soul. She cleared her throat.

Dean threw her bag in the trunk and opened the rear door.

"Nah, I'm sitting up front for awhile."

Dean smiled.

In a few short minutes they were on the highway out of town.

"So, where to next?" asked Laney.

"Not sure," said Dean. "Bobby's looking into some possible cases for us. In the meantime, I'm starving."

"Nothing's changed," said Laney, laughing.

Dean smiled. Something had changed with Laney. She looked healthier, happier, more vibrant than when she'd left. Like somehow a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. If he'd known the time away would have done her so much good he would have packed her off to Lawrence himself.

"So how's Missouri?" Dean asked.

Laney straightened up in her seat.

"Hey, we should stop at that diner off the 52. Remember, it had twenty different varieties of fresh pie," said Laney.

Dean's stomach growled in response.

"It's only a couple of miles from here."

"Sounds good to me," said Sam, distractedly.

They had pulled into the diner parking lot before Dean realized that Laney had never answered his question.

"You never said how Missouri was doing," said Dean.

"I'm sure she's fine," said Laney.

"What do you mean?" asked Dean.

"I wouldn't know how she's doing, because I didn't go to see her."

"Come again?"

Sam turned to his sister with wide eyes. Maybe she had gone somewhere and it had something to do with Dean's deal. Oh God, he hoped she hadn't done something stupid. Made some kind of deal. His heart pounded in his chest.

"I didn't go to Kansas."

"Where did you go?" Dean asked, voice barely controlled.

"Chicago."

"Chicago? Why? What's in Chicago?"

Laney licked her lips and swallowed thickly. Her mouth was completely dry. But in for a penny, in for a pound.

"I went to see Gavin."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Come again?" asked Dean

"I went to see Gavin."

"I'm sorry, I must be hearing things. You just said you went to see Gavin?"

"Yes, Dean. I got on a plane. I flew to Chicago. I stayed at Gavin's place. You finished your case and now I'm back. Is it clear now?"

"Hey, don't be a smart ass," said Dean, as he rubbed his forehead. Jesus, this kid was making him crazy.

Laney huffed. Her nervousness about coming clean with her brothers had suddenly dissipated and was replaced with annoyance.

"Why would you go see Gavin after what he did to you?" Dean asked, legitimately confused.

Laney sighed deeply. "It's all water under the bridge now."

"Water under the bridge?!" Dean sputtered. "Unbelievable." Dean turned towards Sam, who was being awfully quiet.

"Did you know about this?"

"No, Dean, I didn't tell him, so don't start in on him."

Sam huffed. Laney had her reasons. Whatever they were, he would talk to her about it later, but time spent on this was time wasted, when he could be looking for a way to save his big brother.

"She's an adult, Dean," Sam said, finally.

Laney's eyes widened in surprise. Not exactly the reaction she expected from Sam, but welcome nonetheless.

"Fantastic," muttered Dean. No back up on this one.

"Okay, then what happened in Chicago?"

"Let's go inside and get some food," said Laney, pointing to the restaurant.

Dean glared at her.

"Pie, Dean."

Dean's stomach involuntarily grumbled at the thought. "Fine," he said, as he walked off.

Laney heaved a huge sigh. Telling Dean what she'd done was actually the easy part if she really thought about it. Now she had to explain why.

The hostess quickly settled them into a booth, Laney quickly scooching in next to Sam to avoid sitting next to Dean, who wasted no time ordering, forcing his siblings to order quickly too.

"So, start talking," said Dean, as soon as the waitress left.

"I needed a friend," Laney said, simply.

"Since when did Gavin regain friend status."

"Since, I found out my brother is going to Hell in a year."

Dean's jaw clenched.

"Does he know something or someone that can help?" Sam asked hopefully, finally deciding to say something.

Dean shot his brother a dirty look. Sam was thinking about this all wrong.

"No, actually," said Laney quietly, as she started fiddling with the creamers on the table.

Sam's shoulder sagged.

"Listen, I needed a friend, someone I can talk to outside of the two of you. It's hard," she said, pointing at her head. "All the noise in here. Being around you… Dean, I can feel the demon mark on your soul, every second I'm around you, I feel it."

Dean's brow furrowed. He knew what he had done was emotionally painful for her. He just didn't realize that it was physically painful. Or maybe she had mentioned it. Who knew? He'd been distracted in the last couple of weeks. Obviously, if he let his sister go off to Chicago without even double checking. He sighed and motioned at her to continue.

"And, I needed the space. I know what Gavin did was really shitty. But he didn't exactly do anything wrong. He and I were not a thing. He didn't have any commitment to me. I forgive him. I put him in that spot. I pushed him away…despite all that, I trust him. He cares about me. I need, I just…I needed him. It's as simple as that. I'm sorry, I didn't tell you, but I knew how you'd react. All this…" She said, circling her hands in the air, "Everything inside me," she paused. "My powers," she said lowering her voice to a near whisper. "It's so big, and what you're facing Dean, it's…it's…I can't wrap my head around it…and I needed someone to help me forget for minute."

Dean sat back in the booth. What could he say to that really? He'd been going full speed ahead since the deal, set on living in the moment, set on fulfilling his fantasies. He hadn't allowed himself to even thing about what he was facing. Not really. But his sister couldn't forget. She could feel it physically. Sam couldn't forget. Sam and his guilt. Laney and her pain. He was responsible for it all. He was supposed to protect them, not cause them pain.

"Here's your food," said the waitress, laying out a platter in front of them. The siblings quieted down while she served them. When she left. Laney started picking at her food. She suddenly wasn't all that hungry. Dean took a bite out of his burger, while Sam stirred his coffee, his expression very far away.

"Dean," Laney said softly. She waited for him to look at her. "I should've told you I was going but I knew you would stop me. But you need to understand, forget the fact that I'm legally adult… I've earned the right to make my own decisions. I don't need to run everything by you anymore. I am my own person."

"If something had happened to you, we wouldn't have known," said Sam, before Dean could.

"You're right," she conceded, "And I will tell you from now on…but I won't be asking permission."

Dean's jaw clenched. Sam looked at him expectantly. This was big. This was a crossroads in the relationship between him and Laney. Dean could be Dean and refuse her the autonomy she was asking for, demand she follow his rules. Or he could let his sister grow up.

"Fine," said Dean.

"Fine? Really?"

"Yeah, what more do you want?"

"Okay," said Laney, with a sigh. She finally took a bite of her food.

Dean put his fork down and pointed a finger at her. "But…I still think he's an asshole."

After a tense dinner, that included some delicious pie, that Dean delighted in. They were back on the road. And even though Laney figured all was going to be okay now, she was sorely mistaken.

"So," said Sam, dragging out the word. "I met a demon."

Laney sat up straight in the back seat and leaned forward. "You what?" she looked to Dean, who clearly already knew this story.

"Yeah, she showed up at the house back in Lincoln, the demon attack. She helped me out when you got knocked out."

"Son a bitch," muttered Laney. "Why didn't you say something sooner?"

"She didn't exactly say who she was that night. It wasn't until Cicero that she finally told me what she was."

"What does she want?" asked Laney, clenching her fists tightly. She was totally over demons.

"She says she can help us get Dean out his deal," said Sam.

"And you believe her?" asked Laney, loudly. "I can't believe you want to trust a demon. We trusted Simon, and look where it got us," she said, with disgust.

Sam huffed, clearly upset his sister wasn't on his side on this one.

"And you're sure she's a demon?" Laney asked.

Sam nodded his head. "Showed me the whole black eyes and all."

Laney nodded her head in disbelief, "I want to meet her."

"The hell you will," said Dean.

"Hey, I'm the one with the powers here Dean. I can sense what she really is. Get an idea of what she really wants.

"No, you are staying away from her," insisted Dean.

"Did we not just have a discussion about me making my own choices?"

"This is not the same thing."

"Oh, it isn't?"

"No, it's not!"

"Guys, can you please?" begged Sam. "I'm with Dean on this Laney. You've been warned before about demons being after you. We can't take a chance."

"We can't take chance, but you're willing to trust her and you want me to trust her too?"

"I don't necessarily trust her. But she says she wants to help, and I'm willing to check anything that can possibly help Dean out. Aren't you?"

That effectively shut Laney up. Sam was right. If there was even a chance, they had to take it. She pushed away from the front seat and sunk down in her own. Her head had started pounding after they left the restaurant. The headaches that she'd been experiencing since Cold Oak, came and went at will it seemed, with alarming frequency. Sometimes they were painful enough she couldn't ignore them, and they brought her down. She had no idea if it was Dean's demon mark, an after effect of killing yellow-eyes, something to do with her powers, or just plain old stress.

She dug down into her backpack and took out a couple of painkillers and a bottle of water. Usually she rode even the intense headaches out without meds, but she was so tired of dealing today.

"Headache?" Dean asked softly, as he met her eyes in the rearview mirror.

Laney nodded as she swallowed the pills.

"Try and get some rest, we've got a few hours before we'll stop for the night."

Laney laid down on the backseat, pulling her hoodie over her eyes. What a few days it had been. Gavin and the short time she'd spent with him. His declaration of love. She hadn't even had a chance to turn that over in her head. Did she love him too? She wasn't really sure. She cared about him no doubt. She definitely had some kind of feelings for him, but love? What would that mean? Could they even have a future? She was a hunter. He wasn't. He had a life in Chicago; a business. How could they even fit their lives together?

 _Ugh_ , she thought. This was going to make her crazy. Instead of thinking about everything was wrong, she hung on to the memories of everything that felt right, and as the fuzzy warmth of the painkillers began to flood her body, she let those thoughts carry her off to sleep.

It was the lack of the roaring engine noise of the Impala that woke her up. Bright lights of some random truck stop filled her eyes. It was night now, so she'd been asleep awhile, and thankfully, her headache had dissipated.

She climbed out of the backseat to find Sam was filling the tank and Dean probably inside getting snacks.

"What time is it?" she asked with a yawn.

"Nine," he said.

"It's getting late, are we stopping for the night?"

"Actually, we got a call. Apparently, Dad had a storage locker we didn't know about. Got a call it was broken into, so we're heading up there now."

"Really, a storage locker?" asked Laney in surprise.

"Yep."

"Huh."

"Yeah, huh," said Dean, approaching with a bag full of food and a beef jerky stick hanging out of his mouth. Laney smiled fondly, Dean always got road snacks as though they were the last supper.

"Where's it at?" she asked.

There was a brief pause. "Buffalo."

Laney blanched, and both her brothers looked at her expectantly. Buffalo was where she discovered the dead body of Darla, the woman whose plight had haunted her. She'd been linked to a reaper. It's what had set the whole trajectory her life was taking. It was not a happy place, nor one she'd wanted to see again.

"The storage place is just outside of the city, town called Black Rock," said Sam.

Laney nodded slowly. "Okay."

Sam knew what was going through her head. He let Dean take over the gas pump and put an arm around his sister. "Hey, we're going to get our own snacks," he said to Dean.

"What's wrong with mine?"

Sam rolled his eyes and steered his sister towards the truck stop shop.

"You alright?" he asked, quietly.

"Yeah."

"Really?"

"No."

Sam pulled her into his side. He sighed heavily. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Ruby right away."

"I understand."

"I don't want there to be secrets between us. Especially when it comes to trying to get Dean out of his deal."

"I know Sam. I'm sorry I didn't tell you I was going to Chicago, but it didn't have anything to do with Dean's deal, so I didn't figure it would matter to you."

 _Ouch._

Sam winced like he'd been punched.

"Sorry, Sammy. That was super bitchy of me."

"Yeah, but I may have deserved that one."

"No –

"Yes," Sam interrupted. "I've been one track mind here."

"Sam, I get it."

"Let me finish."

Laney nodded at him to continue.

"I haven't taken a moment to ask you how you've been doing. About the headaches, about your powers, about the weather, you name it. I haven't taken the time. And I know Dean's been…preoccupied," Laney snorted. "So, I actually completely understand why you went to see Gavin."

Laney sighed. "It's not that I feel ignored. I don't Sam. I want to save Dean just as bad as you do. I just, I don't want all the other stuff to distract from that, so I called Gavin."

"Did it help?"

Laney smiled, and Sam noticed how big and genuine it was. "It did. It was a few days of normal. No hunting, no talking about hunting. No anything."

Sam smiled. "Yeah, I remember those years at Stanford, with Jess. They were good. Normal is good."

"Yeah, but normal isn't us. I wish it was."

Sam sighed, heavily, and pulled his sister in tightly. "Me too baby, me too."

It was early morning hours when they pulled into the storage facility at Black Rock. Sam finessed the keys to the locker and they made a move to enter with no idea what to expect. Dean unlocked the padlock and all three of them turned on their flashlights. Dean drew his gun just to be on the safe side. Who knew what their Dad had been storing.

Laney coughed at all the dust. "Doesn't seem like he'd been here for a long time."

Sam nodded.

Dean pointed his flashlight on the ground. There was a Devil's trap painted.

"No demons allowed," huffed Laney.

"Look…blood," said Dean pointing at bloody footprints. "Check this out."

"Is that some kind of trip wire?" asked Sam.

Dean nodded. "Whoever broke in got tagged. And it looks like it was a two-man job."

Laney was barely paying attention to her brothers, shining her light all over the room. The walls were lined with boxes, guns, artifacts. All kinds of interesting items he must have obtained over the years. This was going to be awesome to look through. Laney winced as she passed a wall. Sharp pain pinching between her eyes. She took in a sharp breath.

"You okay over there?" asked Dean, not missing the change in her breathing.

Laney nodded, the pain was receding already. "Yeah, it's just you know this stuff gives off energy. I'm feeling it."

Dean shot Sam a worried look. "You know, if you want to wait outside…"

"Hell no," scoffed Laney. "I feel like Indiana Jones right now. I want to see what's inside."

Sam chuckled. He was pretty excited himself.

Dean shook his head. "Nerds," he said with affection.

"Hey, look at this," said Laney, pulling an old dusty trophy off a shelf. "1995 Division Championship soccer," she read.

"Woah, I can't believe Dad kept that," said Sam, taking it from her.

Dean pulled an old shotgun off a shelf. "Hey! It's my first sawed off. Made it myself in sixth grade," he said grinning widely.

"Look," said Laney. She picked up a box and pointed to the symbols inscribed on the side. "This is binding magic. I've seen this at Bobby's. They're curse boxes."

"They're supposed to keep evil mojo in, right?" asked Dean.

Laney nodded. "Yeah, they contain the power of whatever cursed object is inside."

"So cool," said Sam, grinning at his sister.

Dean rolled his eyes. "You know, Dad's journal mentioned a bunch of stuff. Like dangerous hexed items. He never did say where they ended up."

"So, this must the place," said Sam.

Laney studied the shelf and noticed a rectangular shape in the dust. "Yep, and I think one of those boxes is missing," she said, pointing to the dust free spot.

"Let's hope they didn't open it," said Dean.

Laney snorted. "If they took this one thing, then they must have known exactly what was in the box."

"Yeah, I guess we're going to have to track it down. No telling what it might be," Dean agreed.

"Or what curse it's going to unleash," added Sam.

Laney continued searching the storage locker as her brothers talked over their next steps. In the corner she noticed a file cabinet and inside several file folders. She pulled out one, and much to her surprise it was full of drawings that she'd made for her father as a kid. She swallowed the lump in her throat. She had no idea he'd saved them. She felt a physically painful pang at his absence.

"Hey, uh, I think I'm going to stay here," said Laney, distractedly.

"What? Why?" asked Dean.

"Why not?" asked Laney. "I mean look at all this stuff. There could be something really useful here. Maybe something that can help you Dean."

"Yeah and probably some really dangerous stuff. I don't think it's smart leave you here alone."

This time Laney rolled her eyes. "Listen, I'm not super excited about the idea of hanging out in Buffalo tracking down whoever or whatever. I want to stay here, see what's around. Take an inventory. I won't mess with anything. I'm not stupid."

Dean and Sam did that thing where they look at each other and have a whole conversation without words. It aggravated Laney to no end. But she knew she'd gotten her way when Dean sighed.

"Fine," he said.

"Love you!" she said, giving him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Just stay out of trouble," he grumbled.

"Me? More look you guys should stay out of his trouble."

Dean huffed as he kissed the top of her head and headed out of the storage locker.

Sam lowered his voice to a near whisper, "Search everything. Call Bobby if you need help identifying anything. Take pictures of it all. We can't haul all this away, but we can figure out what it is with his help."

"I'm on it Sammy."

Sam smiled. "I know you are." He ruffled her hair and took off after Dean.

Laney waited until she heard them get on the elevator before she closed the locker door and turned around to get to work.

Laney yawned, she'd been at it for nearly an entire day and she was feeling it. There were definitely some interesting finds. But nothing that seemed like it would be helpful to Dean. Most of it was low level voodoo stuff, curse boxes, hex bags; some spell books that might be useful. But nothing that jumped out as being important. She carefully took pictures of everything and made notes. She didn't dare open the curse boxes. She'd called Bobby a couple of times to ask him about certain symbols. Dean had called to let her know they had found the thieves and recovered the object from the box, but he didn't seem keen on telling her much more than that. He sounded preoccupied.

Among all the supernatural artifacts were pockets of things from their childhoods. Their father had kept arts and crafts projects they'd done in school, old trophies, report cards, all kinds of keepsakes from their childhood. It made her think of her father in a different light. She'd always imagined none of that was important to him. He was not the best father. He had many faults. But it was clear that he loved his children fiercely. Maybe all these things had provided him solace. She imagined that he'd lived a life filled with deep regret. She missed him.

She sighed heavily. She was never really going to know what went on inside that head of his. He was as much of an enigma in death as he had been in life.

She rubbed her eyes. She was getting tired, but it didn't seem like her brothers would be coming back for her anytime soon. She got up, stretching her back, when she stiffened suddenly. There was an awfully familiar buzz building at the back of her head and zipping through her spine.

"No freaking way," she muttered under her breath.

"I'm afraid so," said a voice from outside the closed door.

Laney flung it open angrily. "You have a lot of nerve."

"Hi Delaney, you're looking well."

"Fuck off, Simon."

"That language really doesn't become you."

Laney let loose a stream of curse words that would've made Dean proud.

"Are you finished?" he asked.

"What are you doing here?"

"It's been awhile, and I wanted to see how you were doing," he said, staying clear of coming inside. He saw the Devil's trap painted on the floor. He wouldn't fall for that a second time.

"Bull, you only show up when you want something."

"That's not true. I show up when I need to make sure you're keeping safe."

Laney's skin crawled, Simon's ice blue eyes practically glowed.

"Safe from what? You? How's life treating you since I got rid of Yellow-Eyes for you and your demon buddies? I thought you got what you wanted."

"Seriously. I'm just here to warn you to watch out."

"Watch out for what?"

"A demon named Ruby. She's been sniffing around from what I hear. Offering her services."

Laney perked up. "How do you know about that?"

"It's my job to know these things," he said.

"She one of yours?"

"A Renegade? Technically."

"Technically? What does that even mean?"

"She's sort of affiliated. But she's gone rogue on this one. We don't know exactly why she's suddenly taken an interest in saving Dean. Or claiming to want to save him anyway."

"Is there any truth to it? Can she save him?"

Simon's mouth twisted in a sideways grimace. "Your guess is as good as mine. Maybe. Possibly. Probably not."

Laney was growing more frustrated by the moment. "So, once again, useless."

"I know you're unhappy that I didn't interfere at Cold Oak, but I told you from the beginning that I'm not here to save Sam, I'm not here to save Dean. This is about you. It's always been about you."

"Preserving my life, includes preserving my family. If you know anything about us, you would know that much by now," she spat. "And besides, I thought that my destiny was killing yellow-eyes? I did that already. And look what it got me… nothing."

"Oh Delaney, I wish you knew the truth."

"So why don't you tell me? Why all this secretive double talk?"

"I can't. I'm not supposed to interfere."

"That makes no sense. You've interfered plenty. How about when the Feds got me?"

"I do have rules to follow. I bend them sometimes. Dance around them, but I have my limitations."

Laney threw her hands in the air in defeat. "Fine! Consider me warned about Ruby. I don't know what else you want from me."

Simons sighed. "How are you really? How are your gifts?" he asked.

"Painful."

"Yes, I've heard."

"You've heard. From where?"

"I have my ways," Simon straightened up, smoothing down his jacket. "I'm glad you're okay. The pain, I wish I could help you with it, but that's all on you."

"Of course it is," Laney snorted. "And I suppose you can't tell me anymore about these supposed gifts or where they come from?"

"All I can say, is they aren't connected to Sam. The gifts Sam has are of a different origin. And that will eventually put you and your brother at odds."

Laney's whole body tensed. "What are you talking about?" she demanded.

"I think I've said enough for now. Take care of yourself."

Laney took a step towards him, but in a flicker, he was gone. She shook her head in disgust. She really hated him.

Laney was flat out exhausted. She called her brothers to come get her, leaving out the part about Simon's visit. Dean had told her to stay clear, that there had been "complications" and they would connect with her as soon as they could. So, for now, she was on her own. She took a taxi to the nearest motel and checked in. She was too tired to think, too much had happened; the room with the supernatural treasures, Simon's visit. His usual song and dance of not really telling her anything but warning her to watch out for something, but he couldn't tell her what. It was ridiculous. She was more curious than ever about meeting Ruby. She wanted to know what she was about, wanted to get a feel for her presence. She didn't trust demons, even if they professed to be able to save Dean from his deal with Hell.

The constantly nagging headache was back probably due more to exhaustion and stress than anything else. After a long hot shower, she popped a painkiller and got her ass in bed for some real rest. There was only so much thinking she could do. She texted her brothers the motel information and settled in for the night.

It was a testament to how exhausted she was that it took her a moment to recognize the knocking on the door.

"Sleepy head, open up," sang Dean.

Laney jumped out of bed and opened the door. "Sorry," she said with a yawn.

"You look like crap," he said, with a smile.

"Funny."

Dean shrugged.

Laney looked over at her towering brother. "What happened to your shoulder?"

Dean's face darkened, he looked pissed.

"Did you find anything in the locker?" Sam asked, ignoring her question.

"No," she said, "What happened to your shoulder?" she asked again.

"A little run with this bitch named Bela," answered Dean. He sighed heavily, as he dropped his bag on the motel table. "Long story. Tell you about on the way out of this friggin' town. Once I've had a shower anyway."

"I hear that," Sam agreed.

"Well, I've got a story too," said Laney.

"Oh yeah," said Dean. "It's never gonna beat what we just went through."

"Maybe not, but it's a good one."

"What is it?" asked Sam, curiously.

Laney crossed her arms in front of her and took a deep breath. "Simon paid me a visit."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: This is coming along slowly but surely. Thanks for hanging in there. Please review if you are still interested in me continuing this fic. Happy Holidays!**

Chapter 5

"And he didn't say anything else?"

"Nope, same old cryptic crap," said Laney, kicking rocks through the motel parking lot.

Gavin sighed. "I wish I'd been there."

Laney snorted. After she'd explained Simon's visit to her brothers, she'd promptly called Gavin. She needed someone outside the family to bounce things off of, and besides, she was really missing him. Going through all her father's belongings really made her reflect on her life.

"Yeah, well, I'm glad you weren't. I'm glad my brothers weren't either."

"What did they say when you told them?"

"Sam just wanted to know if he had any inside news on killing Dean's deal and didn't really seem to care about anything else." Laney sighed heavily, "Dean...Dean was Dean."

"I'll bet," laughed Gavin.

There was a momentary silence. "Seriously though, are you okay?" Gavin asked.

"I'm totally fine. I was more annoyed than anything. I thought that after yellow-eyes, I'd seen the last of him. So, it's annoying knowing he's still out there skulking around."

"You want me to come up, meet you?"

"You've got work," said Laney, even though she would've loved it.

"Yeah, but I'm not too busy for you, you know."

Laney felt her ears redden and blush creep up her cheeks.

"I know, but really, not much you can do here," she said. She noticed Dean peeking out the windows from behind the motel curtains. She waved him off. "Besides, I'm not sure where we're headed next and Sam needs to take it easy for a few days. If anything we should head back to Bobby's."

"Yeah, okay. Well, keep me posted. Let me know if Simon pops back up."

"Sure," she said.

"Are you sure you're sure you're okay?" Gavin asked.

Laney laughed, and it was music to his ears. "I swear I'm fine. It's just…" she sighed, "I'm just tired of all this. You know? All the uncertainty…drives me crazy."

"Oh, I know it does."

Laney stuck her tongue out at the phone. "Anyway, Dean is going to have a heart attack if I don't come back inside, so I'd better get going."

"Yeah, okay," said Gavin. "Take care of yourself."

"You too," said Laney. There was a long moment of silence, before Laney finally ended the call and stuffed her cell in her pocket. No "I love you's" today. They still hadn't talked about it. But she was okay with that. She had a feeling he was letting her take the lead. And she wasn't sure yet _where_ to lead.

She took a deep breath before she walked back inside the motel room.

"How's Gavin?" Dean asked, snottily.

Laney rolled her eyes and walked over and sat down at the table where they were eating a dinner of pizza and other various junk foods.

She picked a pepperoni off a slice and popped it into her mouth. "So, where to next? Bobby's?"

"Bobby's? Why Bobby's?" asked Sam.

"Uh, your shoulder dummy," she retorted. "I thought we'd be up for some downtime."

Dean shook his head. "Your stubborn ass brother thinks we have a case a couple states over."

Sam scowled at his brother.

"Well, tell _your_ stubborn ass brother that he's going to have to run research, because we usually need two arms to go hunting" said Laney.

Sam huffed. "Very funny."

"She's not wrong," said Dean. He threw down his slice of pizza and rubbed a hand tiredly through his hair. Sam getting shot had really rattled him. Hell, the whole experience in Black Rock had rattled him. Dad's super-secret supernatural stash, Bela, the cursed rabbit's foot, and then Simon's visit; he'd had better days.

"This hunt is more brain than brawn," said Sam finally. "So, you'll probably need to sit this one out Dean."

"Oh, aren't you a little bitchy," said Dean, tossing a balled up napkin at his brother.

"Guys, please," said Laney, shaking her head at the ridiculousness of their behavior.

Dean crossed his arms in front of him like a petulant child.

"What's the case?" Laney finally asked.

Sam stewed quietly.

"What's the case?" Laney asked again, kicking his ankle under the table.

"Forget it," he said. "We'll go back to Bobby's. I want to get the Colt anyway."

Dean's ears perked up. "The Colt? Why?"

"Don't get your panties in a knot Dean, I didn't make a deal with a demon. I'd tell you first."

Laney's eyes widened. _Ouch._ They were really at each other's throats today.

"Fine," Dean said, through gritted teeth, "We're going to Bobby's. First thing in the morning."

"Fine," said Sam.

"Fine," said Dean again. He stood up, stuffed his wallet in his jeans and grabbed his jacket. "I'm going out."

"Of course you are," said Sam.

"Jesus Christ! What is wrong with you two?" Laney snapped.

Dean pointed at his brother. "Ask him," he walked to the door. "Don't wait up," he said, before slamming it shut.

Laney looked at Sam. "Well, what is it? What the hell is going on?"

"Nothing," said Sam.

"Nothing? Really?" Laney snorted.

Sam stood up without a word, grabbed his bag, and went into the bathroom. The sound of the running shower followed a few seconds later.

"Great," Laney sighed. This happened every once in a blue moon. It wasn't hard to get on each other's nerves when sharing space nearly 24/7. But they'd been sparring with each other more often than not since Dean made his deal. Sam was pissed. Dean wasn't sorry. She wasn't sure where she fit in with all of this. She was grateful to have Gavin now. Dean didn't really have anyone else. Sam neither for that matter. Usually, they would come to her as a friendly ear, but that hadn't been happening lately.

Laney felt the throbbing starting to build behind her eyes. Just great, she thought. Another headache. She reached for her bag to find that her bottle of medication was empty. Had she really gone through all that in the last month?

She only used the really good painkillers when it got to be too much and it was rare that she gave in. But Doc Mason had become somewhat of her go to doctor after he fixed her up after the demon Meg had kidnapped her, in Sam's body no less. A couple months earlier he'd actually called to check up and see who she was doing. She mentioned the headaches to him and he'd immediately wanted her to go get a CT scan to make sure all was well in her brain. After all, she'd suffered a traumatic brain injury not even two years earlier. After her father's death, she did her therapy to get walking again, but had shunned all medical intervention since. But Dr. Mason was easy to talk to. He knew about the supernatural. He knew her unique circumstances. She promised she'd eventually get around to the brain scan. So, he'd given her a prescription for a migraine medication that actually worked pretty well. Not that she'd really told Sam or Dean what was going on. She filled the medication when they weren't around and kept it tucked in her bag with the tampons, because she knew Dean would rather die than go digging through that bag.

 _Sigh_. She was out of the meds. She had a prescription on her, so she could go get it filled, but Dean was gone with the car and they were on the outskirts of the city. Sam was clearly in no mood to go out and she wasn't excited about the idea of sitting around all night with a sulking Sam.

Decision made, she grabbed her prescription from her backpack, and pen and paper. She wrote a quick note to Sam letting him know she was out getting supplies and would be back in a while. No need to let him worry, even if he was being a brat. She called a taxi and headed out into the setting sun.

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"How long before it's ready?" Laney asked the pharmacist.

"It's pretty busy this evening, so I'd say at least an hour."

Laney nodded. "Okay, thanks."

She'd taken a taxi the 20 minutes into downtown Buffalo to the pharmacy that was open latest. She hated being there. Buffalo happened at one of the lowest points in her life; the reaper, the Adderall addiction, her gifts becoming a thing. She shivered.

With an hour to kill she started walking to a nearby bookstore to grab a coffee and find something to read to distract her. It was a pleasant late summer evening. Fall was on the horizon and she could feel the change coming in the air. She loved Fall, but every changing season this year was a season closer to losing her big brother to Hell. And she was beginning to really feel like there wasn't anything she could do about it. She understood Sam's fervor to free Dean from his deal, she really did. He felt tremendous guilt that Dean had given his life for him so easily. But she was certain Sam would do something as equally dumb as their brother had and that scared her more than anything. This wasn't about trading one brother for another. There were times now that she felt like she'd lost both and the idea of walking the world without either one was a bitter pill to swallow.

"Hey, Daisy!"

Laney's head snapped up. She spotted a young man, running across the busy street toward her. She kept walking, hugging her bag close to her. She had the gun her brothers had given her for her 18th birthday tucked in there. But that was kind of a last resort weapon, and it was actually filled with consecrated bullets. Sometimes she forgot regular people could be monsters too.

Laney quickened her steps a bit. "Hey Daisy," he repeated as he reached her. Laney slowed her steps, she recognized something about him.

She stopped and turned around, recognition hitting hard. "Tim?" she asked.

"Yeah, I wasn't sure it was you until just now, sorry if I scared you," he said, noticing how tightly she was gripping her bag.

Laney loosened her stance up a bit. Tim had been Darla's boyfriend. The girl she's helped get justice for. The one she'd been linked with during death. "What…uh…how are you doing? I thought you'd gone to Boston."

Tim smiled widely. "I did for a while. It was great too. But…Buffalo is home."

Laney smiled back, his smile was contagious; bright and genuine. "So the job didn't work out?"

"Oh, it worked out just great and your friend Brian was really amazing. Kind of mentored me actually."

"I'm glad to hear it."

"What are you doing in Buffalo? Where are your brothers Bo and Luke?" he asked, with a smirk.

Laney shook her head in amusement. "Around," she said. "We're just passing through."

"Are you going to tell me your real name?" he asked.

Laney chuckled. "Brian didn't tell you?"

"No, he was pretty tight lipped about you guys actually."

"Sort of an occupational hazard giving out our information," she said dryly. "It's Laney," she said, reaching out to shake his hand.

"Where are you headed?"

"To the bookstore," Laney said. "You?"

"Well to work actually."

"What are you doing for work?"

"I work down at the homeless shelter for teens. I'm an advocate and shelter monitor. I round up kids on the street that need a place to stay, try and direct them to services, you know…help them out…like you did for me."

Laney felt a lump forming in her throat. It was extremely rare that they ever saw the bright side of anything they did. It was usually, kill the monster, vanquish the ghost or demons, and move on to the next case. People were grateful, but rarely did they get to see impact. This was real and tangible and made things worth it.

"I'm so happy for you."

"Kind of found my calling really. I mean, after Darla, it was rough. But you gave me an opportunity to do something with my life and I did owe it to her to make something of myself."

"Really, that's amazing."

"I can't thank you enough."

"You're welcome. Really. You did all the hard work though."

"You don't give yourself enough credit."

Laney smiled and shifted awkwardly. She wasn't the most socially apt person and this was a lot of socializing with someone who wasn't her family. Or Gavin. Gavin was easy.

"I know you said you're heading to the bookstore, but if you have time, would you be interested in coming down to the shelter and seeing what you helped get started?"

"Uh, well, I don't have a lot of time."

"It's just a couple blocks up the street. Would mean a lot to me."

Laney nodded. "Why not," she said. She had an hour to kill anyway. "Lead the way," she motioned.

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Dean opened the door into the motel room, steps hesitant. He could see Sam seated against the headboard of the bed awash in the glow from the television. He looked relaxed, so at least it seemed he'd taken some meds for his arm.

Dean removed his wallet and dropped his keys on the table with a sigh.

"You're back early," said Sam.

Dean was grateful not to hear any bitterness behind the statement.

"Not really much of a scene around here," he said. Really, he'd had one drink and then decided he'd rather not let this thing between him and Sam stew for too long.

Sam nodded silently. "There's leftover pizza still," he said. This was his peace offering.

"How's the shoulder?"

"Sore, a little stiff, but it's not bad really. A few days I think I'll be fine."

Dean nodded. "If you really want to check out this case in Delaware, it's not a problem."

"I've got someone on it already. Winston was in the area, so…"

"Awesome," said Dean. He walked to the opposite bed and sat down on the edge, facing his brother. "Look Sam, I'm sorry…"

Sam cut him off. "Don't worry about it man. It's been a rough couple days."

"I know, but – "

"Really Dean, it's fine. I was being a jerk too."

Dean nodded in affirmation and Sam snorted.

"Good talk," said Dean, as he leaned back against his own headboard.

Sam chuckled softly.

Dean's eyes narrowed. "Hey, where's Laney?"

"Said she had to run out for supplies," Sam replied.

Dean's lips curled and he shivered. _Supplies_ , was usually code for feminine stuff. He leaned over and snatched the remote from the bedside table and started flipping channels. This was good. Quiet time with the siblings over a night binge drinking and getting laid. It was a nice change.

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Laney followed Tim a couple blocks through the edgier parts of downtown Buffalo. She was accustomed to being in dangerous situations but she that didn't mean she didn't have a sense of self preservation. And also, her brothers were usually with her. But Tim was wholly comfortable and easy-going and it helped to ease her discomfort. They chatted amiably on the walk to the shelter. He pointed out areas that he targeted for his outreach. Areas where teens congregated to do drugs, or generally help each other live on the streets. Many of them waved hello to him and gave Laney a glance or two over. She knew these types of kids didn't take kindly to outsiders.

"It's still a few weeks to fall," said Tim, "So it's harder to get the kids inside the shelter when the weather is nice and the days are longer. We're always busier in the winter. But spring and summer is when they always get in the most trouble."

"What kind of services do you guys provide besides shelter?"

"We have a network of social workers that help them find things like housing, medical care, food pantries, etc. We try to see if we can get them connected to stable family. Get them in GED programs or back in school if we can. A lot of drug treatment as well. It's hard to not end up on drugs when you're living out here."

Laney nodded solemnly. "Does it work?"

Tim sighed and sounded like someone much older than he was. "Not as much as I wish it did. We get a few success stories here and there. But honestly, it's like swimming upstream most of the time. It's really hard to separate them from their street crews. They become family."

"I guess if even one person makes it, then it's worth it," said Laney.

Tim grinned big. "You would know, you made that happen for me."

Laney blushed. "Well, my brothers and I…our work is….uh…different. But we help the way we can."

"What exactly is your work anyway?"

Laney shrugged. "Stuff."

Tim laughed loudly. "Yeah, Brian wouldn't tell me either. I think I have an idea though."

Laney raised an eyebrow at him. "I highly doubt that."

Tim grinned again and stopped in front of a set of double doors. He pulled out a key card and unlocked the door, guiding her inside.

"We keep the building really secure. We have strict no drug policy too. You have to be clean to stay here. No weapons, no alcohol. Sometimes in the winter when it's really bad out, we bend the rules a bit just to keep these kids from starving though. It's better than them ending up at the adult shelters."

Tim proceeded to give her a tour of the facilities. It was a little run down in parts, but very clean and very welcoming. Laney felt a sense of pride that she'd affected someone enough to change their life and then pay it forward. It was a humbling experience and she looked forward to sharing it with Sam and Dean. They could all use a little positive news.

Laney glanced at her watch. The hour was up and her prescription was probably ready. It was fully dark now and time she headed out.

"Thanks for showing me everything," she said. "We should keep in touch."

Tim handed her a card with his phone number and email. "Next time you're passing through, maybe we could hang out a little," he said.

Laney stuttered a bit. "Uh…sure...I don't know that I'll be back anytime soon."

"I'm sorry, I'm sure you have a boyfriend. I wasn't trying to – "

Laney cut him off. "No, no, it's fine," she said as she headed for the doors. "I, uh, keep in touch."

"Wait, let me walk you back to where you were headed."

"Oh, no, I'll be fine," she said, eager to get out of there. She was terrible at talking to boys who showed interest. It wasn't like the comfort she felt with Gavin. Who she was missing acutely at the moment.

"Please," he said. "It can be a little dicey after dark."

Laney saw the dark shadow cross his face and reminded herself that he had lost someone he loved dearly to violence. Someone he had been unable to save and protect.

"Sure," she relented.

He held the door open for her just as an older man was rushing up the steps.

"Hey Tim, I just heard. There's been another attack in the park."

"One of ours?" Tim asked, breathlessly.

"Yeah, Mark Lowry," he said.

"Damn," said Tim. "Is he okay?"

"It's bad."

"What's going on?" asked Laney. "What kind of attack?"

Tim sighed. "Fourth attack this last month. Some kind of wild dog in Anderson Park. Police, animal control, nobody has been able to spot it or track it."

Laney's interest piqued. "Any deaths?"

"No," said Tim, "But the injuries are serious. I guess the victims get really sick, slip into comas. None of them have recovered yet. Some kind of serious infection sets in that they have trouble treating."

Laney pursed her lips. She had a feeling she'd just stumbled on a case. There were two things she could do; call her brothers, even though Sam was incapacitated for the moment and Dean was boozing it up, or she could manage this one on her own. At least for now.

"I'm going to head to the hospital," said Dwayne.

"Yeah, I'll meet you over there in a bit. I'm going to walk my friend home."

Tim was quiet on the short walk back to the pharmacy. He was obviously preoccupied.

"Thanks for making sure I got here safely," she said.

"Of course," he said. "Take care of yourself."

"Will do. You too," Laney gave him a hug. "Keep in touch. I want to know how things work out here."

Tim smiled. "Yeah, I will."

Laney walked into the pharmacy and quickly picked up and paid for her prescription. Once to the curb, she waved down a taxi.

"Where to?" he asked.

Laney took a deep breath. "Anderson Park."

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Dean startled awake. He didn't even realize he'd fallen asleep. The last thing he remembered was settling in and watching an old Western movie on the TV while Sam passed out from the good painkillers. He was snoring obnoxiously in the other bed.

He looked over at the time. He'd only been asleep for a couple of hours, it was only 9pm. He didn't usually knock out so early. He noticed Laney was still absent.

He grabbed his phone worriedly, but there was a text from her to him and Sam.

 _Found an awesome bookstore. I'm going to hang out here for a while. I'll get a taxi home. Love you!_

Dean shook his head. _Nerd_. He sent a quick text. _Call me when you're done. I'll come pick you up._

He got out of bed and gently laid a hand on Sam's forehead to make sure he had no fever. Never could be too careful worrying about infection.

Satisfied Sam was fine. He settled back in to watch a movie, and quickly dozed back off to sleep.

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The taxi driver dropped Laney off just shy of the park entrance. There was still a police presence, but not much of one. She didn't imagine if all the victims were runaway junkie teenagers, they were going to be putting too much manpower into solving a wild dog problem. But she knew the second she stepped out that there was something supernatural at play. She could sense it.

She felt her confidence falter a bit. Maybe it would be better if she called Dean in on this. After all, he'd just texted her that he would pick her up from the bookstore, which meant that he was sober and probably back at the motel already. But Dean would be gone in less than a year. She could not rely on the idea that he would always be there to help her. She needed to get used to doing things without him.

Decision made she walked the perimeter of the police presence. Sensing the evil; the darkness. Whatever it was, it wasn't friendly. At the same time, it was odd that it didn't kill its victims. What was the point then?

There was a small crowd of onlookers gathered around the yellow tape, mostly teens, probably friends of the latest victim. Just beyond the tape she could make out a large spot of blood, some torn pieces of clothing, but mostly, it was the deep sensation of dark magic at work. It made her skin feel electric and her head buzz. Not demons. Just definitely supernatural.

Laney sighed in frustration. She wished her gifts could be more specific. It was one thing to know evil was afoot, but a whole other not to have a clue what, when, where, why. She moved in closer to the crowd to get a sense of conversation.

"He and Carlos were just hanging out at the benches down by the water when they heard a growl. Then they saw red glowing eyes coming out of the woods…they took off running, Carlos got away but…"

Laney's eyebrows raised. She was pretty sure she knew was she was facing. She pulled out her phone and dialed. It was answered on the first ring.

"Well, hello kiddo."

Laney smiled widely. "Hey Bobby. I need you tell me everything there is to know about Black Dogs."


End file.
